Fallout 4: New World
by Ti9ress
Summary: Fallout 4, huge canon divergence. Vault 111 is a control Vault, resulting in a wildly different sequence of events. Follows Nate and Nora together as they navigate the chaos of the early post-war years, and try to survive in the new world.
1. Prologue: Future War Story

_Author's Note: I don't even know where to begin explaining this. This fanfiction is essentially a massive Fallout 4 AU, where a lot of things are different from the game. The biggest one is: Vault 111 is a control Vault, one that functions exactly as advertised by Vault-Tec. The aim of this story is to explore how Nate and Nora's lives might have gone if this were the case. It's not explicitly a romance fic, but Nate and Nora's relationship will be heavily explored. I'm a HUGE Fallout fan, and I've always wanted to write a story like this. Hopefully my passion for the setting and characters will come through. With that out of the way, please enjoy the story, and remember to review and comment._

* * *

 **MARCH 18, 2068**. Nate couldn't stop staring at the date on the form. _2070\. If I do this now, I can be out some time in 2070._ It seemed like a hundred years. He looked up from the paper and glanced around the recruiting office. Three others, two women and one man, sat at the other tables, filling out their forms. Nate sighed, and gripped the pen for the fourth time. _Come on, Nate, for once in your life, help your fucking family._ He began scrawling his information out on the form. Signing away his future, and potentially his life, for what would probably be another pipe dream.

It had been a death march all week. Their house being foreclosed was news to both Nate and his mother, which led to one of his parents' most vicious fights yet. Then, they had to pack everything they could into the Highwayman, and make the long drive down to Boston to beg Nate's uncle to let them stay with him for a while. From there, his father's latest scheme took form. One last desperate gamble to stay on their feet, and Nate was the linchpin.

He made the final signature. _If you turn this in, you will be sent to Alaska._ At least on a fishing boat, he could stay in the mainland. _No. No more what-ifs._ He rose from his seat and marched to the intake desk. The walls in the office were lined with patriotic posters, most of them featuring Uncle Sam or Lady Liberty. The newer ones depicted a soldier in power armor. It was quiet, except for the drone of the fans above him. He handed over his army recruitment form to the woman at the desk.

"Thank you," She said. "If everything checks out, you'll receive a call soon to schedule your physical exam appointment. Until then… try not to break any bones or anything, son."

"Uh… can do." Nate replied.

Twenty minutes later, he was back in the car with his father, speeding down the road. "So, that was step one." His father said. "Step two will take place down at the car dealership. We're gonna sell this piece of junk Highwayman, and use the money to buy up as many war bonds as we can get. When you get out of the army, we'll make a fortune when they cash out." Nate stayed silent. _And step three is, you go home and get drunk, and I get shipped off to Alaska to freeze and die._ "What do you think?" His father said.

"It's very patriotic, Dad." Nate grumbled.

"Look, there's loyalty to your country, and then there's loyalty to your family. Someday you're gonna realize… you gotta put one above the other."

"Really? Because it seems to me like you're fucking over both right now."

"Hey! Language, young man. And how the hell do you figure that? I'm giving money to the war effort, giving the US of A one more soldier on the front line, _and_ giving my family a shot at a better future." His father shot off.

"You're using us. All you want is money." Nate spat.

"God _damn_ it! You and your mother! You're so ungrateful! I have done nothing but bust my ass for twenty goddamn years, and the two of you can do nothing but pout and complain. You better hope the army straightens you out, boy. Or at some point, you're gonna find yourself with nothing. Now, you can go, run off, be like one of those deadbeat hippie kids in California. I won't stop you, because I won't be your father anymore. It's time to make a choice, Nathan." Nate clammed up. His father never called him Nathan. _God, he's serious._ It was at that point that Nate realized _he_ wasn't serious. He was never going to cut and run, he was just angry.

"Dad…" He thought about his next words carefully. "You know there isn't a choice." He said. The rest of the car ride was silent.

* * *

 **JUNE 5, 2072**. Nora couldn't help but snort. _I'm feeling it now._ "So… that was four years ago? Why are you still in the army? Unless you're not anymore, and you just like wearing your uniform to bars."

The soldier chuckled. "That's a longer story. Maybe I'll tell you later."

Nora laughed again. "Oh… you think there'll be a later?"

He leaned in. "I do, actually." _Damn. He knows my every weakness. Keep it together, Nora._ The soldier was tall, with dark hair and a roguish look. Handsome. Manly.

"So… did it work out? Your father's scheme?" She asked.

"Well, it didn't really need to. Obviously." He said.

"Obviously?"

He gave her an odd look. "You don't read the papers, do you?"

"Well… no. I spend most of my time studying."

"Oh. Well, then let me introduce myself. Nate Winters. I, uh… well, according to General Chase, I single handedly stopped a Red offensive through the Chugach Mountains. See, when they ran into me, I basically panicked. Started blindly firing at them. I was about to start retreating... when _they_ did. Apparently, I fired off so many rounds the Chinese thought the pass was much more heavily defended than it actually was. I didn't stop the whole attack, but apparently an entire division or something was sent on their heels. So, they pinned a medal on me. For panicking."

Nora smiled. "That-" She couldn't contain herself, and burst out laughing. "I'm sorry, but that sounds like the _biggest_ pile of bullshit I've ever heard. How many women have you told that story to tonight?"

"Well, you and one other. But that doesn't mean it's not true! I can show you the medal."

"Let me guess. I just have to come over to your place?"

"Come on, look at me. Do you think I need to make up stories to get women to come home with me?" The soldier wore a big grin.

"Well, you're a handsome guy. I still think you're trying to pull a move on me, though."

"Alright, I'll tell you what. Forget everything I just said. Let's start over. Hi, I'm Nate. What's your name?"

"Nora." She told him.

"Oh. A pretty name for a pretty lady."

Nora laughed. "Cute."

"What do you like to do for fun, Nora? Besides go drinking." He asked.

"I'm a college student. I don't get to have fun."

"Oh yeah? What are you studying?"

"Law. I want to be a lawyer. Someday." She said.

"My uncle was a lawyer. In Boston." He sounded like he was getting drunk.

"Is that where you're from?" Nora asked him.

"Me-? Oh no, I'm from Colorado originally. My family lives in Boston, though."

"What are you doing in New York?"

"It's just where they sent me on leave. And not a moment too soon, if you ask me." He seemed to tense up slightly.

"Why's that?" Nora pressed him.

"Oh right, you don't read the papers. You gotta get into the news, Nora. Keep up with the times. The good old US of A… just announced its plan to annex Little Amer- Canada." Nate slurred.

"Holy shit, are you serious? Why?"

"Well, it's the pipeline. The oil pipeline, only thing keeping our planes and tanks running. Those sneaky little Canadians don't like all the American soldiers running around in their country, so they tried to sabotage it. One of the only sources of oil left in this world, and they tried to destroy it. And you know what? I don't even fuckin' blame 'em. Anyway… well, that was the last straw." He seemed considerably more grim now. Suddenly, the two of them seemed out of place, sitting in the bright, chatty bar. _God, he looks even better when he's brooding._

"So, what, you're afraid they'll send you up to Canada next?" She finally piped up.

"Shit, I have no idea. The only thing I know is, the second they tell me to go put down some riot, I'm gone. I didn't sign up for that."

Nora set her drink down on the bar. _Okay. He's definitely not just another blockhead soldier._ She took a deep breath, and smiled at him. "What do you say we get out of here?"

* * *

 **AUGUST 1, 2076**. "What do you think, honey?" Nora asked.

Nate sighed. "It's… what's the difference, besides the color?" The day was clear, and relatively warm. Nate was starting to sweat in his uniform.

His wife frowned. "The color is what I'm asking you about. These houses are all prefab."

"Oh. Well, then the blue is definitely better. More… modern."

"Yes sir, these houses are as modern as they get, no matter what color they are. Built in, modular kitchen system, state of the art HVAC, and specialized plexiglass windows. No looter's getting in here, that's for sure." The realtor pitched.

"Looters? We drove all the way up here to get _away_ from the chaos in the city." Nora said.

"Better safe than sorry, honey." Nate told her. _If we're gonna be raising our kids here, I want the works._

"I guess you're right. So, if we're going for blue… how about this one?" They stopped at one of the houses near the bend of the road. "I don't want to live in the cul-de-sac, but I want to be close to it." Nora said.

"This house is available." The realtor informed them. Nora looked at Nate.

"And, the GI discount is still in effect, right?" Nate asked. _I didn't put on this uniform for nothing_.

"Of course, sir."

"Great. Then… I think we'll take it." Nate smiled at his wife. _This is it. The rest of my life._ He couldn't be happier with the way things turned out. War hero. Beautiful, funny, smart wife. Picturesque house. _I think I finally understand the "American Dream"._

"Splendid!" The realtor announced. "Just a few signatures, a little paperwork, and you'll be all set." The realtor walked off to his car to get the paperwork, and Nate and Nora hugged.

"Just one more tour, honey." Nate said. "Then we can finally start our family. All the food riots, the energy crisis, the martial law… we can just put it all behind us."

"When do you ship out?" Nora asked.

"October. One more year, then I'm out. Maybe even sooner than that. I hear China's on its last legs. We'll be set for _life_." Nate said, almost pleading with her.

"I know. You do what you need to do." His wife said. _It's time. It's time to put family above country._ "Just promise me one thing, Nate."

"Anything." He breathed.

"Come back."

* * *

 **OCTOBER 23, 2077. 9:21 A.M.** " _It's all over… but the crying…"_ Nora opened her eyes. Sunlight bled in through the curtains. She instinctively reached for the alarm clock behind her, and brought it to her face. _Oh man, I slept way too long._ She rolled over to face her husband.

"Why didn't you-?" But he wasn't there. Nora sat up in the bed, and threw the blanket off of her. She opened the closet and put on a bra and underwear before heading into the hallway. The sound of the shower running grew louder as she approached the bathroom door. A smile curled across her face. She looked back into Shaun's room, then in the kitchen, where Codsworth was probably making breakfast. Then, she crept into the bathroom, and shut the door behind her. The shower curtain was drawn.

"Honey?" Nate called as Nora slipped out of her clothes. She pulled back the curtain and stepped inside. Nate's black hair was hanging in front of his eyes, sopping wet. He flipped it back and smiled. "Hey you." He said.

The shower began to soak Nora's hair just like Nate's. She smiled back. "Hey you."

Fifteen minutes later, they were both dressed, and squabbling over the mirror. "Hey-" Nate grunted. " _I'm_ the one who's gonna be going on stage."

Nora conceded. "Ah, you're right."

Nate looked down, made a big sigh, then raised his head, sporting his most solemn look. He made eye contact with himself in the mirror. "War… never changes." He recited. Then he sighed again, looking nervous.

"You're gonna knock 'em dead tonight, hon." Nora told him.

He looked at her through the mirror, and grinned. "You think?"

"Absolutely." Two weeks ago, Nate received a letter from the mayor of Concord, inviting him to give a speech there on the Resource Wars. He gladly accepted, and had spent most of his time since drafting his speech. Nora had only heard part of it. According to him, it was "blunt, but hopeful". Either way, she was sure the people of Concord would be wowed. "When are we leaving for this thing, anyways?"

"At five. The whole thing will take a few hours. I'll give the speech, we'll have dinner, drinks, then go home." He told her.

"Not too many drinks, I hope."

"Obviously." He pushed his bangs back with his hand, giving him a casual kempt sort of look. "Until then, we've got time for pretty much anything."

The smell of frying bacon brought them to the kitchen, where Codsworth was finishing up breakfast. He spun around as they entered. "Ah, good morning!" He called. One arm stoked the bacon, another flipped a pancake in a pan. The third was scrambling their eggs. In all, every part of the stove was being used. As Nate and Nora sat at the counter, Codsworth lifted the coffee pot off the stove, scooped up two mugs, and poured their morning coffee. "273.5 degrees fahrenheit. Brewed to perfection!" He boasted.

"Thanks, Codsworth. " Nate said. He reached over and unfolded the morning newspaper. _Hm. If the newspaper was delivered, the milk probably was too._ Nora got up and went to the fridge. Sure enough, the milk was there. She retrieved a glass and poured herself some.

"Hey, save some for the cereal." Nate said after swallowing some coffee.

"The cereal? What, are you having cereal too, along with your pancakes, bacon and eggs?"

"Not today, but… I think we should start getting used to non-perishable foods."

Shaun began fussing in the other room, which quickly turned to crying. "Codsworth, go change Shaun's diaper." Nora said. He floated off down the hallway. "Non-perishable foods? Why?"

"In the army, they told us that radiation after an atomic war could take years to go down. We wouldn't be able to live off bacon and eggs for five years." Nate said.

"We can't live off of Sugar Bombs, either." Nora folded her arms.

"Well, it's the principle! Being prepared in case something does happen." His voice defensively went up an octave.

"I don't know if you noticed, but our bomb shelter isn't exactly stocked… or _built_ , even."

Nate stood up. "I'll tell you what. Tomorrow morning, I'll call… what was his name? The guy we met at the hospital. He gave us his business card. Scott something." He walked over to the stove, and brought down two plates from the cabinet. "I'll give him a call. His guys will go to work right away building one of their shelters." He loaded a plate with their breakfast, and handed it to Nora. "Then we can stock it with as much food as we like. Hell, come to think of it, they have powdered eggs, right? Freeze dried bacon?" He made a plate for himself. "We'll be fine."

Nora raised her hand. "Why are you talking about this like it's already decided?"

"Don't you _want_ a bomb shelter? We have the money."

"No. I just wanted a glass of milk, and you turned it into a conversation about atomic war." Nora was getting frustrated.

"Honey-"

"God, don't you have any _hope_?"

"Don't be dramatic." Nate scolded.

"I'm sick of hearing you talk about things in the past tense. We have a _son_ , Nate."

"You think I've forgotten that?!" His anger seemed to turn to sadness. He sighed. "I'm sorry, honey. I'm thinking of- when you hear the speech tonight, you'll understand where I'm coming from."

Nora looked down. "I'm sorry too. You know I'm just scared." She said. There was a long silence as they sat at the counter. "Are things really that bad?" Nora finally asked.

"No." Nate replied without thinking. "Or… I don't know."

"That salesman from Vault-Tec keeps showing up at the door, and I turn him away. Should we… think about that?"

"Come on, we don't have the money for that. Backyard bunker is cheaper." He said. Nora stared down at her food, which was getting cold. "Look at me." Nate said. She did. "We are going to be alright. No matter what. Okay?"

"Okay." Nora said quietly.

* * *

 **OCTOBER 23, 2077. 11:43 A.M.** "Nate!" Nora called from the living room. The sound echoed into the bathroom, where Nate was styling his hair. _I just have to strike a balance between 'formal' and 'military'_ , he thought. Nate was desperate to impress the veterans at Concord tonight. Or at the very least, not earn their scorn.

"No, that won't do…" He muttered to himself.

"Nate!" Nora yelled again. He noticed it this time.

"Coming!" Nate called back. _Screw it_. He tousled his hair into his normal style. Nora was still in the living room, loading Shaun into his stroller.

"Honey, do you remember where we put the coats and stuff? They're not in the closet here." She asked.

"Oh, yeah." Nate wheeled around. "They're in the bedroom, I'll go get them." They were heading to the park, now that it was a little warmer outside. Nate returned to the living room a few moments later with two coats, two pairs of gloves, and a scarf for Nora. Shaun already had his warm clothes. "You ready to go?" Nate asked when they were all dressed up.

"Yeah." She began pushing the stroller out the door.

Nate turned back into the doorway. "Codsworth! Don't burn down the house while we're gone." He called, jokingly.

Codsworth chuckled back in the kitchen. "Yes sir. To be sure!" He said, before Nate shut the door.

Nora had already brought the stroller to the sidewalk. "Here - I've got it, honey." Nate took control of the stroller. "I know how your hands get cold."

Nora chuckled. "Oh, what a gentleman!" She said playfully. "Thanks." She put her gloved hands in her jacket pockets.

Nate didn't mind the cold of Boston. _Compared to Alaska, this might as well be Hawaii._ It was a clear day outside. Only a few wispy clouds on the edge of the horizon. Barely a breeze to rustle the leaves (He was sure Nora was thankful for that). There was a path leading into the woods next to the Richardson house, with a construction barrier blocking it. Nate could spy the top of a tractor on the hill, past the chain link fence. "Wonder what they're building up there." Nate said.

"Donna said she sees people heading in and out of the woods almost every night. Whatever it is, it must be big. Abby Rosa bets it's a dedicated power station for the neighborhood, so we don't get blackouts." Nora gossiped.

"That'd be nice" Nate replied. They passed a mailman on the sidewalk, who gave them a disarming smile. Some kids were playing in the Sumner's yard. Nate had always loved this neighborhood. The serene, family oriented feel of it beat the hell out of living in the city. Especially these days, with riots every month.

Nora grumbled as they approached the old bridge to the south. "When are they gonna replace this bridge?" She asked rhetorically. "Every time I drive the car across it, I feel like it's gonna collapse."

They finally arrived at the park a little after noon. It was pretty far from Sanctuary Hills, but the walk there was easy thanks to the clear skies. "Here's hoping this weather holds up until Halloween." Nate said.

"Yeah. Good baseball weather, too."

"Oh, _shit._ The World Series! I can't believe I forgot about that." Nate sighed. "God, I would kill for tickets."

Nora chuckled. "You probably would have to kill someone, just to be able to cram yourself into that stadium."

"When's it come on TV?"

"I think One. We'll be able to catch part of the game before we head to Concord at Five."

"You think the Sox are gonna win?" Nate asked.

"You tell me. They're your team." Nora was never as big a baseball fan as Nate.

"I think they've got the biggest shot of our lifetime." Nate looked to the South. Boston was actually visible in the distance. When he squinted, Nate could just make out Fenway Park.

After a few circuits around the park, Shaun fell asleep in his stroller again. Nate and Nora sat down at a nearby table. Nora pulled a thermos out of her bag, and began sipping on something. "Want some?" She asked, in between sips.

"What is it?"

"Hot cocoa. Codsworth won't make it as hot as I like, so I had to heat it on the stove."

"Alright." Nate took the thermos. The steam whipped around in the breeze. He took a sip.

Nora cleared her throat. "There's also a… small amount of whiskey in there, too. Just for some extra warmth."

Nate coughed and laughed as the whiskey burned his throat. "God, you really can't handle the cold, can you?" He croaked out.

Nora burst out laughing. "No, I really can't!" The park was big and nearly empty, so they were both able to laugh without feeling self-conscious. Shaun shifted in his stroller, but his eyes remained closed. The scene brought Nate's thoughts back to his speech. He watched Nora's smile, as he handed the thermos back to her. _She doesn't even realize it's all for her._ He was eager to impress the vets, yes, but the real reason he accepted the invitation to Concord was for Nora's sake. If he was being honest, the state of the world today frightened him. Ever since Anchorage was liberated, it was like the world was holding its breath. What would China do next? The reds pressing the button was a very real possibility at this point. Nate wanted to impress that upon her in a way that didn't seem confrontational or alarmist. He felt like he would accomplish that today, and he was glad. But he was more glad for the opportunity to spend a happy, peaceful day with his family. _The truth is… I live for days like this._

* * *

 **OCTOBER 23, 2077. 9:18 P.M.** The drive back from Concord was short. The road was dark and empty. As they tumbled over the wooden bridge leading back home, Nora tried to think of something to say.

Nate broke the silence first. He chuckled to himself, and said "I can't- I can't tell you how relieved I was when the other vets started clapping. I was terrified the only reaction I was gonna get was mortified silence."

"Are you kidding? Your speech was the highlight of the evening." Nora replied. _War never changes. If that's not the truth…_ "You told people what they _needed_ to hear, not what they wanted to hear. That takes guts." She continued. He smiled at her as they pulled into the driveway.

"So… you liked it?" Nate asked tentatively.

They both climbed out of the car. "I think it was exactly how you described it: blunt, but hopeful."

"Good." Nate said, sounding relieved. Nora could tell the speech was important to him. The way he shut himself away for hours at a time, writing it. They entered the house through the side door in the kitchen. Codsworth stood ready to greet them. "Truth is, I'm kind of relieved. I had it bottled up for so long, it was becoming a burden."

Codsworth took Nate's hat and coat. "Well, I'm proud of you." Nora said. She handed Codsworth her coat, and he floated to the closet by the front door. Then she slumped into a stool at the counter. Nora was exhausted - today had been an eventful day. Across from her, Nate picked up the newspaper on the counter. His daily ritual of scouring international news had been interrupted today. Every morning for the past six months, he'd check on the progress of the "War". _As if it's going anywhere._ She studied his face. Handsome, rugged, weathered features. His heavy eyes glazed over the morning's newspaper. "Hm, more of the same…" He muttered. "Even after Anchorage…"

Nora perked up. "You didn't really think that would solve everything, did you?"

"I expected something to happen. Anything- I just thought things would change. I'm starting to think we might just be stuck in this status quo." Nate said, frustratedly.

Nora frowned. "This isn't the status quo. And I do think Anchorage changed things. It'll just take time for things to feel normal again." Nora hadn't met Nate before he became a soldier, but she understood his experiences in Alaska drastically changed his worldview. It was what caused him to become so concerned with the state of the world. That was one of the things Nora admired about him. He genuinely cared. He wanted to change things.

Nate sighed, then chuckled. "You know, I'm not really sure I can remember what 'normal' feels like. Can you? I mean, even since we were kids... it's like people are losing their minds." He set the newspaper on the counter.

In a way, she knew he was right. The Resource Wars began when they both were barely older than Shaun, and hadn't let up since. It started out as skirmishes between poor countries fighting over oil fields. Then it spread to Europe… then Anchorage. _Is it getting closer to us?_ No. No, she couldn't think like that, not with Shaun. Mother has to be optimistic. She has to believe that her children will grow up in a better world than she did.

"Honey?" Nate asked, a thousand miles away.

Nora noticed she was staring at the floor. She looked up, and smiled at her husband. "It's gonna be okay. Us, the world, everything. In ten years, no one will even care about oil. Shaun's gonna grow up driving... an electric car." She smiled, and put her arms over his shoulders. "Driving across shiny streets and glowing towns, in a world where no one worries about China, or food rations, or energy riots."

Nate smiled back. "Yeah. Shaun... and all his brothers and sisters." They didn't buy that station wagon for nothing. He kissed her. For a moment, nothing else mattered but Nate and Nora. She treasured those moments.

Then, the doorbell rang. The world came knocking. Nate groaned. "Who's at the door at this time of night?"

Nora laughed. "Do you think they would talk to Codsworth?" Then she glanced out the window. The blue Vault-Tec van sat in front of their driveway. "Oh, god, it's that salesman again."

"The Vault-Tec guy? Damn, he's persistent. Well, I guess you're up. He always asks for you."

Nora sauntered toward the door. _Nate was in the army, not me. Moron._ She would have to turn him away again. They simply didn't have the money for entrance into a Vault. The door cracked open, and there stood the salesman. Ginger hair, sweaty face, even at 52 degrees.

"Good evening!" He chirped. "Vault-Tec calling!" Clearly a rehearsed greeting.

"'Evening' is pushing it, but... hello. Can I help you?" She tried to seem rushed, not even opening the door all the way.

"Actually, I think I can help you. If you haven't noticed, ma'am, this country has gone to heck in a handbasket." _Fucking commie. Or maybe just someone trying to sell something._ Either way, she had to resist the urge to knock him on his ass. "If you'll pardon my language. The 'Big Kaboom' is... it's inevitable, I'm afraid. And coming sooner than you may think. If you catch my meaning." Hell of a sales pitch. _Was he listening to us talk?_ "Now, I know you're a busy woman, so I won't take up much of your time. Time being a, um, a precious commodity..." He was sweating even more now. "I'm here tonight, to tell you that because of your family's service to our country, you have been preselected for entrance into the local Vault! Vault 111."

"Wait. Preselected for entrance? What does that mean?" Nora asked.

That seemed to throw him off. "Oh. Uh, well, simple. It's just a fancy way of saying you get in for free, ma'am."

"Really? So you're saying because my husband was in the army, we get spaces reserved in a Vault without paying a dime?" Nora was incredulous. Vaults were state of the art underground shelters. Not cheap, like a homemade bunker or a Series 1000 shelter. Atomic war, viral plague, meteor impact, you name it. They could all be ridden out in a Vault. According to the commercials, anyway. She recalled the little cartoon mascot, waving at the screen, safely tucked away under a mountain.

"Yes, that's exactly right."

"Honey, did you hear that?" Nora called back at Nate, who had the TV on. She finally opened the door wider.

Nate came to the door. "Hm?"

"He says we can get into a Vault for free."

"Are you serious? How? Or- why?"

"He said it's because you were in the army."

"Well, guess that was worth something after all." Nate joked.

The salesman gave a genuine-sounding chuckle. "Yes sir. fact, you're already cleared for entrance. It's just a matter of verifying some information." The salesman continued. "Don't want there to be any holdups, in the unforeseen event of uh, 'total atomic annihilation'. He gave a nervous laugh. _Just like the commercials._ "Won't take but a moment." He finished.

"Sure. Let's do it." Nora said. _I can't believe how lucky we got._

"Splendid, splendid! Let's see here..." He handed her the form and a pen. She scrawled her name at the top. Below, there were a series of questions, like an aptitude test. A little blurb on the side read "Tell us about yourself! Vault-Tec needs to know what kind of citizen you are to ensure your future happiness." The questionnaire was short, only seven questions. She handed the clipboard back to the salesman. "Wonderful! That's everything. Just gonna walk this over to the Vault. Congratulations on being prepared for the future!" Before she could respond, he was off. _What about Nate's form...?_

"Uh... thanks again." She said, far too late. She shut the door, and turned around to see Nate giving her a huge grin.

"Do you have any idea how much money we just saved?" He asked.

"A shitload?"

Nate burst out laughing. "Probably even more than that."

"Does that mean we can keep making out?"

"Fuck yeah it does." He grabbed the remote and turned up the volume on the TV, and they went at it.

Before it got too steamy, Nora opened her eyes. "I just realized something."

Nate didn't stop. "What?"

"That construction project on the hill. I bet it's the Vault."

Now he stopped. "Holy shit. That's gotta be it."

Down the hall, Codsworth emerged from the nursery. "Miss Nora," He called. "Shaun has been changed, but he absolutely refuses to calm down. I think he needs some of that 'maternal affection' you seem to be so good at."

Nate sighed. "We just can't catch a break, can we?"

Nora laughed. "I guess not."

"I'll be there in a second to help." Nate said. _I guess a boy needs his mom._

The nursery was brightly lit. It was well past Shaun's bedtime. He laid in the crib, swaddled but still wailing. When Nora dangled her hand over him, he stopped, his curiosity getting the better of him. He took his mother's finger in his hand, giggling.

"My boy isn't giving his mother any trouble, is he?" As promised, Nate was in the doorway, leaning on the door with one arm. _Handsome as ever._ "Hey, I fixed that mobile on his crib the other day. Why don't you give it a spin?" Shaun giggled some more as the little rockets spun above him. Nate paced over to the crib. "That's my boy. On his best behavior, just like his dad. Well, most of the time, anyway…" Nora couldn't help but chuckle. _The men in my life._

Nora could faintly hear the news anchor droning in the living room. It had been a long day, longer than Nora was used to. Soon, they would shut the TV off and go to sleep. "So… tomorrow is Halloween prep. Decorations, candy, and mostly importantly, Shaun's costume." Nora said. After some bickering, they decided that Shaun would be a little red devil this year. "I made a list of supplies to get. We'll make a craft project out of it." Nora smiled at Nate.

"No arguments from me. I just can't wait to carve pumpkins, though. I-"

Suddenly, Codsworth cut him off. "Sir! Mum! You should come and see this!" He shouted. Yes, shouted. Codsworth had never shouted in the 13 months they had him. Her blood ran cold. It was an instinctual, primal reaction that filled her with dread.

"Codsworth? What's wrong?" Nate shouted back. He could feel it too. She saw it in his face. They exchanged a look, and Nate lifted Shaun in his arms. Together, they walked to the living room. Codsworth was parked in front of the TV. The news was still on. Her stomach continued to fall.

The usual newscaster was huddled up in his chair, staring down at a piece of paper. His voice piped up, tense and shaky. "Followed by... yes, followed by flashes. Blinding flashes. Sounds of explosions... We're... we're trying to get confirmation…" He paused. Nora's head was spinning. He didn't have to say it. _No_. "But we seem to have lost contact with our affiliate stations." _No, no, no!_

"What? What did he say?" Nate's eyes widened as the realization set in. "Oh no." He whispered. Nora looked down at her son, swaddled in his father's arms. _Not now_.

"We do have coming in... that's confirmed reports, I repeat, confirmed reports of nuclear detonations in New York and... Pennsylvania." The newscaster choked out. Nora was frozen. She just gazed blankly at the TV. "My god…" The man laid his head in his hand, and the broadcast cut out.

Nora finally snapped to. She realized she had been holding her breath since Codsworth shouted. She exhaled, and her wits came back. "The Vault." She blurted out. _We can make it._ "The Vault! We have to get to the Vault! Now!"

"I've got Shaun! Let's go!" Nate was of two minds now. Soldier and father. Nora dashed to the front door and ripped it open. She was ready to head for the hill when she noticed Codsworth, still floating in front of the television. They would have to leave him behind. She felt terrible about it.

"Codsworth, just... try to find somewhere to hide, okay?" It was hardly good advice, but Codsworth had a real chance of making it if he survived the blast.

"Don't worry about me, mum! Just get Shaun to safety!" She tried to tell herself that Codsworth was just a robot, that he was never even alive.

"Good luck." Nora finally said. With that, they were off. A strange helicopter-like vehicle flew over the neighborhood, shining a spotlight down on the houses. The bomb sirens began blaring. It was chaos outside. They must have been the last ones out. Their terrified neighbors filled the street, packing suitcases, boarding up their houses, or just plain running for their lives.

"RESIDENTS OF SANCTUARY HILLS. IF YOU ARE REGISTERED, EVACUATE TO VAULT 111 IMMEDIATELY." An authoritative voice blasted over a loudspeaker. Down the street, Nora could see soldiers and military vehicles parked in the road. Nate and Nora made their mad dash to the construction site. The Vault-Tec van was still parked in front of their house. Across from them, the Jahanis were huddled together by the sidewalk. _Oh god, they're not registered. They don't have anywhere to go._ They just held each other, seemingly in one final embrace. Nora felt sick. Down the road, the older couple were frantically loading up their car. The woman was in a robe. They must have been sleeping.

"We'll drive to the coast! That's gotta be far enough!" The man shouted.

"What if it isn't?!" His wife shrieked back. _Godspeed, you two._

They were almost at the forest path now. The sirens continued to wail overhead. Lacey and Donna Richardson were also out on the sidewalk. "The nukes are coming! _Those Communist bastards!_ " Donna screamed. She sounded on the verge of tears. _You have to at least try,_ Nora thought. She tried to steel herself. Nate and Shaun were the only people she could focus on now. Her family.

At the path leading into the forest, there was a soldier, directing people up the hill. "Vault participants! This way!" He shouted above the sirens. Nate went first. Nora trailed behind as they scaled the hill leading to the Vault. She noticed Abby and Gabriel Rosa on the path. In fact, there was a surprising amount of people there. _How many people will we be sharing this place with?_

"Hold on, little guy! Hold on…" Nate said as they crossed the creek bridge. Then, Nora saw it. The crowd of people gathered by the gate at the top of the hill. Frantic, half dressed, shouting over each other. Above them stood the large billboard, with all the calm, happy people filing into the Vault single file, as mushroom clouds soared up just behind them.

"That's absurd! I AM Vault-Tec!" A familiar voice rose up. The salesman was at the gate, arguing with a soldier holding a clipboard.

"You're not on the list. You don't get in." The soldier growled.

"I'm going in. You can't stop me." He tried to push past the soldier, but the other men in power armor spooled up their miniguns. _Christ. These people mean business._ The salesman threw his arms up in surrender. "Whoa! Oh- oh- okay! Okay!" He turned around and sprinted off back to the neighborhood. "I'm reporting this!" He yelled as he ran.

One of the soldiers in power armor stepped forward. "If you're in the program, step forward, otherwise, RETURN HOME!" He boomed. Not many people left. They had nothing to lose by staying.

Nora pushed through the crowd of people to meet the soldier with the clipboard. Nate was just behind her. "We need to get in!" She said, as commanding as possible. "We're on the list. Nora and Nate Winters."

The soldier peered at his clipboard. "Winters… infant. Adult male. Adult female. Okay, go ahead." He stepped aside to let them through.

"Thank you!" Nate breathed.

"Good luck, sir. And God help us all." The soldier said grimly.

A Vault-Tec security guard approached them as they crossed the final stretch to the Vault. "You two, with me! Come on!" He waved them on.

"What's gonna happen to all those people outside the gate?" Nate asked him. _Even now, he's still concerned._ Nora couldn't help but feel pity for them as well, even as she tried to block it.

"We're doing everything we can, now keep moving!" The guard assured them. _Which is to say, nothing at all._ The top of the hill was strewn with construction equipment, trailers, a few cars. On the opposite side of the clearing, another of those strange vehicles landed on the ground. Nora wondered how they would enter the Vault. The commercials showed the Vault door just sticking out of the side of a mountain. But that couldn't be how it really was. As they reached the peak of the hill, She noticed a group of civilians standing on a big blue hatch. Then it hit her. _An elevator_. They would take an elevator underground. "Step on the platform! In the center!" The guard shouted as he headed into a control station by the elevator. Nate and Nora joined the others in the center. Nora recognized a few of them. Mr. and Mrs. Able. Mr. Russell, the bachelor. There were eight of them in total. Eight survivors. _There has to be more people already in the Vault._ There couldn't just be eight of them…

"Alright! Send it down!" Another guard shouted. _Finally._

"Almost there! Is Shaun okay?" Nora asked one last time.

"He's fine. We're gonna be okay. I love you." The trees behind him lit on fire. Nora shut her eyes just before the blinding flash turned night into day. It didn't take long for the sound to reach them, startling Nora into opening her eyes. "Oh my god!" Nate shouted. Behind him, the fireball bloomed upward, somewhere west of Boston. The clouds parted around it. As the blast wave steadily rushed toward them, Nora didn't feel anything. Not fear, not shock, not anger. She was entranced by the destruction. The world was orange and yellow. Then she noticed Nate, trying to shield Shaun from the heat.

"Hold on!" Nora tried to yell over the sound of the blast.

"NOW! NOW! SEND IT DOWN NOW!" Someone cried behind her. The elevator began descending. The blastwave flew toward them, eager to kill.

"Can't this thing move any faster?" One of the men Nora didn't recognize shouted. The wall of death was almost upon them.

"Oh god! Oh god oh god oh god!" A woman wailed. Just as their heads went below the surface, the blastwave swept above them. They all instinctively ducked. As they descended down the dark shaft, Nora took one last look up. A storm of fire and dust raged just overhead. _No one could survive that._ So they were it, then. The last people to be saved. Nora felt like she was floating in the darkness. As the elevator sealed itself from the surface, she wondered if she would ever return. She wondered if there would be anything to return to.


	2. There's Nothing Inside

**OCTOBER 23, 2077. 9:48 P.M.** The further down they went, the quieter it became. The rumbling and the firestorm slowly faded, leaving only the droning of the elevator and their short, panicked breaths to fill the darkness. Nate's ears began ringing. The tingling sensation in his arms and legs became more noticeable in the dark. _Hello, old friend. Back again, are you?_ In Alaska, when the fighting became overwhelming, Nate would sometimes freeze up. His arms and legs would begin to tingle, and he would just find cover, lay his gun down, and sit in the snow. The world would fall away, and Nate would imagine himself in a warm, dry desert. A realm where nothing could touch him. The VA doctor said it was a coping mechanism. That everyone handles combat differently… _Why am I remembering this? Shock. I'm in shock…_

"We did it." Nora said suddenly, "We made it. We're okay…" After what seemed like an age, they reached the bottom of the elevator shaft. The darkness faded away. The elevator gate door lifted to show a mustached man in a blue jumpsuit, with what looked like a security guard in front of him.

"Everyone please step off the elevator, and head up the stairs in an orderly fashion." The security guard said. To his right were the stairs, leading up to a big doorway shaped like a cog.

"No need to worry, folks. We'll get everyone situated in your new home. A better future… underground." The man in the blue jumpsuit said. Nate noticed he was holding a clipboard.

Their neighbor, Mr. Russell, finally spoke up. "So, we just…?" He croaked out.

"Yes. Up the stairs." The security guard replied.

"I can't believe it. If we had left a minute later… we'd all be…" Mr. Able trailed off. _We just signed up for this Vault not even an hour ago. God, what are the odds of that?_

"No, no! Don't get caught up thinking about that. You're safe now." Nate realized the man in the jumpsuit was some kind of greeter, probably there specifically to calm everyone down. "Everyone just head up these stairs, and through the door there.

"Nate." Nora said behind him. Nate turned around. "Are you… are you okay? You're not burned, or anything?"

"No," Nate breathed out, "But it was _hot_ , though. Like a blast of heat. Shaun seems okay, too." The baby boy looked up at Nate from his arms. He seemed more curious than anything. _You're probably the calmest person here, buddy. Good thing we were facing away from the explosion..._

They began ascending the stairs. Mr. Whitfield stepped aside, and leaned against the wall. He looked ready to collapse. "We just need a moment…" He said, as his wife came to his side.

"Do you want me to take Shaun?" Nora asked. Her voice was still shaking a little.

"I've got him." Nate said. They passed through the cog shaped doorway. The inside of the Vault was mostly neutral pastel tones, gray and blue metal. More people in blue jumpsuits stood waiting for them. _How long have these people been down here?_ As they crossed the metal walkway, they approached what looked like a radiation scanner. It made a droning sound as they passed. "Is that- is that bad?" Nate asked.

"Oh, no." The woman operating the machine said. "When an atomic bomb goes off, there's an immediate 'flash' of ionizing radiation that hits everything the same way the light or heat does. It's not a large amount, though. A small dose of RadAway for everyone, and you'll be A-OK."

"That's… comforting." Nora said.

In front of them, a woman stood in front of a table, handing out the blue jumpsuits to new arrivals. "Everyone, please, take a Vault suit." She said. _I guess we're all supposed to wear them._ Nate took a good look around. _This is our new home._ _Who knows how long it will be until it's safe to go outside?_ The army had their estimates, but reality could vary wildly. Nate was next in line for a suit. He took it from the woman. _It's surprisingly light._

The mustached man rejoined them as Nora took her jumpsuit. The group from outside, along with a few other arrivals, were huddled in the corner, still visibly shaken. "Okay everyone, listen. My name is Farris. I'm what's called the 'Overseer' for this Vault. That door behind you is going to close in a moment. And make no mistake, it will not open again for a _very_ long time, not for anything or anyone. So we're in this for the long haul."

Mrs. Whitfield spoke up. "What- what about things we might have left outside? Photo albums, medication-?"

"I'm sorry, ma'am. We can't go back out. Everything on the surface… it's gone."

"How can you be so calm about all this? Don't you know what's happening out there?!" She shouted.

"It's my job to be calm, ma'am." He sighed. "We got the alert around 7. Vault-Tec's early warning systems are on par with the federal government's. We've had time to prepare, and… process things, little time as it's been."

Mr. Able spoke now. "Is there-" He cleared his throat. "Is there still contact with the outside? The government?"

"We were in radio contact with someone from the government, but since the explosion, there's been nothing. We think an EMP may have cut communications." Farris said.

"What was their last report?" Nate asked.

Farris grimaced. "Well… before the nuclear strike on Boston, there were also confirmed attacks in New York, Philadelphia, Washington D.C… in fact, it seems like every major city in the country was hit." The statement was met only with stunned silence. Farris let out a ragged sigh. "Let's not kid ourselves, people. I think we all know… this is the big one. The end of the world as we know it."

 _No, that… that can't be right. The government would survive even a nuclear war._ They probably had more doomsday bunkers than Vault-Tec. Raven Rock in the Capital alone would be enough to house the entire cabinet. Still, that statement alone was crushing. Some people just finally broke down crying. Even Nora's eyes were wet. But they were both too numb to do anything but stand there.

"Oh, god… my parents are in D.C…" One woman said through sobs.

"Our kids… on a camping trip… how could we have known? Oh god! _How could we have known?!_ " One man fell to his knees. Nate thought about his parents and uncle in the city. Nora's parents in New York. _No… don't let that in._ If he let himself feel it now, the floodgates would be open. _There's still things left to do._

"No, don't-" Farris stammered. "You're safe now…" He took a look at his clipboard, flipped the page, then just dropped it. "Listen!" He finally shouted. Everyone stopped for a moment, and Farris took a deep breath. "We've all… got people we… we wish could be here with us." He sounded on the verge of crying, himself. "My daughter, at CIT… I tried calling her half a dozen times, but she wouldn't pick up. Probably… knee deep in some paper…" He gave a small, sad laugh, and sighed again. "We can't go back out for them. And they wouldn't want us to. The only thing we can do is settle in. Because this… is where we live now. This is our lives."

The crying had stopped now. Shaun began fussing a little. "Here," Nora said quietly, "I've got him." Nate finally handed him off to her. His arms felt like they weighed a thousand pounds. It was then that Nate realized how out of place they must have looked. Everyone else was wearing pajamas or night clothes, and Nate and Nora were still wearing their outfits from their night out. Nate in a dress shirt and slacks, and Nora in a dress. Neither one of them had shoes. Nate was only wearing socks, and Nora had slippers.

Farris bent down and picked up his clipboard. "Now, there's still some fairly urgent things to attend to." He said. "Firstly is your medical examinations. We're gonna get you to the EML, check you for radiation, administer RadAway, and a few vaccines as needed." He walked over to the door to his left. "If everyone would please follow me." He said. The door opened, and they followed him down a hallway. The interior of the Vault was similar to the entrance. Metal walls, fluorescent lights, a rather cold feeling to it. "We'll have to examine you one at a time, so there'll be a wait for everyone. But we've got plenty of time." Farris said ahead of them. Nate tried not to think about what was happening on the surface as they took a seat near the EML.

* * *

 **OCTOBER 23, 2077. 10:31 P.M.** Nate watched as the last of the RadAway drained from the packet. The doctor pulled the IV out, placed a bandage on Nate's arm, then scrawled on her clipboard. "Now… you said you were in the military?" She asked him.

"Yeah. Army, '68 to '76." Nate replied.

"That's a long service."

"It's probably what got me in here."

She set the clipboard down on the table. "From that, we can assume your immunizations are up to date. And you've received your RadAway… so I think you're all set. Please send in the next person on your way out." She said.

"Thanks, Doc." Nate hopped down from the table and rolled his sleeve down. He stepped out the door, and showed the next man in. Then, he rejoined Nora and Shaun. "Well, that's all of us." He said as he sat down.

"Yeah." Nora said. She had kind of a blank expression on her face. "Shaun finally stopped crying." She chuckled a little. "As you can see." They sat in silence for a moment. Then Nora spoke up again. "I feel like I want to cry or something, but I can't. I feel kind of… empty. I have since the explosion."

"It's just shock." Nate said solemnly. "All of this… hasn't really sunk in yet. Not for me either. This still feels like some kind of hospital visit or something."

Farris came walking down the hallway. "Remember, people. RadAway is a diuretic. And we gave it to about fifty of you at once, so try not to take too long in the bathrooms. There's a line forming."

Nate stood up as he walked past them. "Excuse me, Farris." He said. Farris stopped. "I'm Nate. Nate Winters." Nate held out his hand.

Farris shook it. "David." He said. "You have concerns, Nate?"

"Well, just a few questions."

"We'll cover all of it in orientation. Overview, Q&A, the works. You'll even get a little booklet with everything you need to know. For now, just sit tight until everyone's ready." Farris said hurriedly.

"Oh. Alright." Nate said as Farris took off again. He sat down next to Nora.

"This is our new home." Nora said suddenly. "These people are our new neighbors."

"Some of our old neighbors, too." Nate recognized the Ables and the Whitfields from Sanctuary Hills. _The rest of them must be from nearby towns._

"So…" Nora started, her voice still ragged. "I guess we can trust our new neighbors to hold Shaun while we go pee?"

Nate burst out laughing. He was pretty sure it was a serious question, but he couldn't help it. It was a pained, half hysterical laugh which almost turned to crying. After he caught his breath, he looked back at Nora. Her expression was still blank. "Yeah, I think we can."

* * *

 **OCTOBER 23, 2077. 11:02 P.M.** They had gathered in the atrium now. By Nate's estimate, there were around 75 people in the Vault. At first, he tried sorting them between 'guests' and 'staff', but then he realized that line would be gone soon. They were all residents here. Regardless, the new arrivals were assembled for orientation. They had been given some time to put their "Vault Suits" on, and now everyone in the Vault was colored blue and yellow. Their old clothes were placed in storage, waiting to be returned to them when they left the Vault… someday.

Nate and Nora had taken their seats near the edge of the big row of chairs that was set up. Some people were whispering to each other, some were holding each other. A few were still sobbing quietly.

Farris entered the atrium. "I'm sorry to make everyone wait," He said, striding to the center of the room, "We've been getting your quarters ready for you. It's still provisional, so you may have to bunk with 2 or 3 other families for now." That didn't elicit much of a response. _I doubt anyone cares at this point._ "Just as an update - there's still no communication with the outside. Not even static. Eggheads say they've confirmed that an electromagnetic pulse is what shut down our communications. Surface electronics are fried, and we don't know how long it'll take to get them running again."

Farris sighed again. _How many times is that now?_ Nate imagined his job must be extremely difficult. _Taking care of 50+ traumatized people while you yourself are in the same boat. I don't envy him._ "Now… the plan was to go over orientation before assigning you to your rooms. But I don't think our schedule planned for the bombs dropping so late at night. I imagine many of you were getting ready for bed when the alarm sounded. And we're all… beyond exhausted. So I don't see any reason why orientation can't wait until morning, when we've all had some sleep." There was a general murmur of agreement. Looking around, Nate noticed many people looked half asleep anyways.

A few of the Vault-Tec staff members stood up. "We'll call you by last names. Like the Overseer said, 2 or 3 families to a room, depending on the number of people." One of them said.

Nate and Nora waited as groups were called up one by one, and led off. "This is going to be cramped, isn't it?" Nora whispered to him.

"Probably."

Another staff member emerged from the doorway, ready for another group. "Okay… the Cofrans, the Winters, and Russell, come with me." He called. Nate and Nora stood up. Across the row, another couple and a small girl stood as well. Mr. Russell followed last. Nate was pretty sure he was from Sanctuary Hills, and lived alone. The 'Cofrans', Nate didn't recognize. They looked the ordinary sort, mid-thirties. Their daughter appeared about ten, maybe eleven. They all followed the Vault-Tec man down the hallway. After a few silent steps, he turned around. "My name's James, by the way. I figure we should all get acquainted with each other." He sounded young, with a slight southern accent.

"That's a wonderful idea," The Cofran woman said. "I'm Diane." She gestured to her husband. "This is Zeke."

Nate shook their hands. "I'm Nate. This is my wife, Nora."

Nora held up Shaun. "This is our baby boy, Shaun." She said.

Diane looked down at the girl, hiding behind her mother and clutching her leg. "This is Cindy. Say hello, Cindy."

"H- hi…" The girl whispered.

Mr. Russell leaned over and shook Zeke's hand. "My name's Franklin, but you can call me Frank if you like." He said.

Finally, they stopped at a door. "This is you." James said. "Living Quarters number six."

"Home sweet home." Zeke said.

They stepped through the doorway, and James left to get another group. The door shut behind them with a whir. The room looked the same as the rest of the Vault. Metal walls, metal floors, paneled ceiling with lights. It was mostly empty except for a row of twin-sized bunk beds. No one had any luggage to set down except the Cofrans, who had a single suitcase worth of belongings.

"Let's try to get some sleep, I suppose." Zeke said hoarsely.

They didn't even bother taking off their suits. Nate fell into bed next to Nora, with Shaun nestled in between them, still swaddled. Everyone began settling into bed. _Five adults, a kid and a baby. Not bad. I expected to be sitting in here with ten other people._ When they were all settled, Frank stood up and shut off the lights. And then they were lost in the darkness.

* * *

 **OCTOBER 24, 2077. 1:05 A.M.** After two hours of lying in the dark, unable to sleep, Nate realized something. It had finally sunk in. _The world was probably destroyed. I am trapped underground. Lying in an unfamiliar bed, surrounded by strangers._ Nate let out a long, ragged breath. Almost a shudder. Then he noticed Nora was still awake, too. They made eye contact, and she smiled in the darkness.

"This is our new life." She whispered. She sounded almost happy, and was sporting the faintest trace of a wan smile. Nate wondered if she had become manic, or something. Then he thought about it some more. _The world was destroyed… but we're safe. We're together. No matter what, we'll stay together._ Nate was reminded of his time in the army. The bond of soldiers, fighting to survive. That was always missing in his relationship with Nora. But now, they would be forced to evolve. They would stand together, in some Herculean attempt to survive in whatever world was yet to come. Thinking about that… Nate actually felt closer to Nora than ever. And in some sick kind of way… he was grateful for that.

Finally, Nate smiled back at his wife. "This is our new life." He said.


	3. Prepared For The Future

_**TEN YEARS LATER**_

 **JULY 4, 2087. 4:29 P.M.** "David!" Nate called, jogging down the hallway.

"You're late." David said, as Nate caught up to him.

"I was busy. You do remember what today is, right?" Nate replied. They started walking together.

"Yeah. And I still think it's pointless." David said, barely hiding his bitterness.

"Well, you're still coming to the party. You may have abdicated the throne, but people still expect to see you around."

"I'll make an appearance. But first, it's time to check the sensor data." David said.

"Plus, I don't think Nora's seen you since you shaved the mustache. I bet she'll love it."

"You on the other hand… you got the glasses and beard thing going. You _trying_ to look older?

Nate laughed. "Maybe. Shaun says it makes me look 'more like a dad'."

David chuckled. "He's right about that." They walked in silence for a moment. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous about this. One more rad-free log, and we can open the Vault. Go up to the surface."

"Shit, that's right. This one would make ten, wouldn't it? If there's no radiation." Nate said.

"Why would there be? It's been almost ten years. Plenty of time for fallout to clear, and then some."

"Just because there's no fallout, doesn't mean it's not dangerous up there." Truth be told, Nate was worried. _We've become soft down here, even with the weapons training._

"Of course not. That's why we want to go up and see." They stepped through the doorway into the entrance room. Harry, and two of Nate's security guards were waiting for them by the Vault door.

"Finally," Harry said. "You don't keep a kid waiting on Christmas morning!"

"Sir." One of the security guards said to Nate as he approached.

"Isaac. We good to go here?" Nate asked.

"Yes sir. The robot's waiting." Isaac replied.

"Then open up the door, Harry." David said.

Harry pulled the adapter plug from his PIPBoy, and plugged it into the door computer. The glass panel flipped open, and he returned the plug to his PIPBoy. Then he hit the coupler ignition button.

The lights dimmed, and the familiar Vault Computer voice rose up. "Vault door cycling sequence initiated. Please stand back." The overhead lights were replaced with spinning orange alarm lights. The motor on the door arm spun up, and the arm approached the blast door. All other sounds were drowned out by the blaring alarms and screeching metal of the door. The gears on the blast door interlocked with the arm, the "clear" light lit up, and the arm pulled the door back with another deafening screech. The air pressure change made Nate's ears pop every time they did this. As the catwalk extended toward the doorway, Nate could already feel the cold air rushing in. They didn't need sensor data to know it was cold out there. _In July, too. Nuclear winter?_ Nate followed David across the catwalk, out into the elevator chamber. Sure enough, the protectron was waiting for them at the bottom.

David leaned over the railing, looking at the robot. "The hell happened to it?" He asked. Nate joined him. The protectron looked mostly intact, but the glass casing of the sensor array was broken. "God dammit, that's where the camera was!" David said, and took off down the stairs.

Harry appeared next to Nate. "And all the sensors too. Shit! I'm surprised they're not completely buried." He said. They joined David at the robot. He pulled the camera out from a small snow pile, and examined it.

"I don't know, it might be bricked." He said, wiping snow off of it.

"Let's get it to the lab. See what we can salvage." Harry said.

It took them five minutes to walk the protectron down to the lab. "If only we had a Mister Handy or something, this whole thing wouldn't've taken so long…" David grumbled. Elizabeth was waiting in the lab, sitting in a chair and sipping a Nuka-Cola through a straw.

"S'matter Ellie? Don't like the cold?" Harry asked as they came through the doorway.

"I think between the three of you, you can handle escorting a robot from the elevator to here." She said. "What happened to it?" She asked.

"We found it like this. Glass must have been broken while it was outside. Snow fell all over the goddamn sensors." David said.

"Perfect…" Elizabeth scoffed. Every time they brought the protectron back from the surface, it was more worn and damaged. The glass breaking was only a matter of time.

"Where's Linc? I thought he wanted to see the results of this one." David asked.

"He left. Said he had other things to take care of. Overseer schedule is busy." Elizabeth replied.

"You don't need to tell me…" David said dryly.

"Are we gonna talk or are we gonna plug this thing in?" Harry interjected.

"Right. Let's see what we can see." David sounded eager. He had grown extremely impatient these past few years, being stuck in the Vault for so long. Nate was far more wary of the surface. _Who knows what could be waiting for us up there._ David pulled a cord out from the protectron, and plugged it into the big computer. The terminal clicked and whirred, and the reels in the banks began spinning. The screen on the terminal came to life, bathing the room in a bright green glow. Nate folded his arms, watching intently. He suddenly realized that he was dreading the results of this. _I'm scared. I'm actually scared of leaving this place._ For the first few years in the Vault, Nate constantly thought about leaving, and 'bringing America back from the dead', as the survival guide put it. But raising Shaun had put that on hold. His priorities had shifted, once again, from his country to his family. And in many ways, Farris was the opposite. As Overseer, he was extremely cautious. Any talk of even temporarily leaving the Vault was quickly shot down. Only after David stepped down as Overseer did he become interested in the surface. Their opinions on it had essentially reversed, over time.

Elizabeth leaned in close to the terminal screen. "It's a little corrupted." She said. "Not as much as I would have thought, though. They built those bastards reliable." She said, gesturing to the robot.

"So what's it say?" Harry asked.

"Hmm. In line with our previous readings. Background radiation count is nil. A few concentrated pockets here and there, but clear overall." She read out.

David laughed. "That's ten!" He cheered. "Ten radiation free scans, five miles in every direction from here." Harry also looked ecstatic.

"The data also reinforces my going theory." Elizabeth added.

"What's that?" Nate replied.

"Well, it's still cold out there," She said. "Still seems like the dead of winter in July. But it's getting _warmer_. Average daytime temperature has increased five degrees in the last four months."

"The last four months _have_ been going from spring to summer, though. Could be that." Harry said.

"I know. Like I said, it's just a theory. I'd like to continue gathering data into this coming winter."

"Still- if it's true, it's perfect for us. The surface will be even more habitable." David said.

"Not only that - but the Vault Computer predicts that the cloud layer could be receding soon."

"How soon?"

"Could be a few years. Could be _months_. We could see the _sun_ again. Can anyone remember the last time they saw the sun?" She said.

Nate could. _That day in the park. Nora and I laughing about… god, what was it? The cold. She can't stand it…_

"Nate." David pulled him back to the present. "When's that party of yours start?"

"Uh, at six. The whole Vault's invited." He said.

"The whole Vault… that seems like a good time to… announce our findings." David put his finger to his chin, as if already thinking about what to say.

Nate grunted. "I don't know about that, David. I think we should keep this in the inner circle for now."

"I don't see any reason to sit on this." David replied.

"Let's at least brief the Overseer, before announcing everything to the entire Vault." Nate was beginning to sound agitated. In reality, he was panicking. _The last thing we need is a mad scramble to get out of the Vault._

David sighed. "Okay, let's go. Let's go tell him right now."

"You can't wait one more night? Or- at the very least until after the party?"

"I-" David started, then crossed his arms. "Alright. Fine. Best do it when everyone's still in good spirits, though."

"Speaking of 'good spirits', how much alcohol is allowed at this party? I plan on celebrating more than just the Fourth of July." Harry said.

Nate shrugged. "Much as you can get your hands on, I guess." He grinned. "Long as you're not afraid of running out."

Harry jumped up from his chair. "Oh, I'll be _trying_ to run out." He started walking backward toward the doorway. "Every… last… drop." He made a waving gesture with his hands, and disappeared down the hallway.

Elizabeth laughed and shook her head. "What an idiot." She said.

Nate rose from his chair. "Well, I'm off too. Gotta help the wife set up the party. See you then."

As he made his way down the hallway, he could still hear someone faintly in the lab. It was David. "Why are they just acting like everything is normal?" He said.

* * *

 **JULY 4, 2087. 5:51 P.M.** "You know," Nora said, pinning an American flag banner across the wall, "I really wish they let us bring Codsworth down here."

"Why's that?" Nate replied, pinning up banners on the other wall. "Want him to do chores for you?"

"No. I want to use his flamethrower and burn every single holiday decoration we have down here. Then we wouldn't have to put them up." She said flatly.

Nate chuckled. "I thought you wanted to host the big party?"

"I know, but it's such a _pain_ putting the decorations up."

Shaun sat down at the table. "I don't want anything else to get burned."

Nate looked at him. "What are you talking about?"

"Georgina said that everything outside was burned, including our old houses. That's why we can't leave." He kept his eyes low, not looking at his father.

"Well… that's not _exactly_ right." Nate pinned up the banner and went to the table. He gave Nora a worried look. _I was wondering when we would have this talk with him._ "We can't leave because of the radiation." _The radiation which is apparently gone now. God damnit._

"What's radiation?" Shaun asked, perking up.

Nora came to them. "It's… complicated, honey." She sat down next to Shaun. "When your father and I were kids, they would show us these cartoons to explain it." Nate remembered watching the old atom bomb educational videos in 1st grade. It was morbid, looking back on it. All those smiling cartoon faces on things like nuclear missiles and ionizing radiation. "Basically, it's this stuff in the air," Nora continued, "You can't see it or smell it, but if you stay in it too long, it'll make you sick."

Shaun was silent for a moment. "How did it get there?" He finally said.

Nate and Nora looked at each other. "That's… a long story." Nora said. "What's important is that it'll go away someday, and then we can go back up to the surface."

Nate sighed. "We can talk about this some other day. The guests will be here any minute. Come on buddy, help me get the punch bowl out of the fridge." _Can I just have this night?_

* * *

 **JULY 4, 2087. 6:29 P.M.** Party guests began trickling in shortly. After thirty minutes, half the Vault had showed up at their house. The party itself was spilling out into the hallway. Forty people, drinking, talking, having a good time. "Way Back Home" was playing on the cassette player, just loud enough to be heard over the din. Nate sat at the counter, with a cup full of punch in his hand, taking in the sights. He tried to make a running count of everyone who had showed up to the party. The Cofrans had arrived, with Cindy trying to put herself at the opposite end of the party from her parents. Harry was there, already drinking his fill. Nate spotted Isaac wrenching a cup full of whiskey out of his brother Danny's hand. He got a good laugh out of that.

Suddenly, Nora appeared in front of him, pushing through the crowd. She sat down next to him. "It's packed, isn't it?" She had to raise her voice for him to hear.

"Yeah, I'm kind of surprised at the turnout." Nate replied, realizing too late what that sounded like.

Nora frowned at him. "What, you think I can't throw a proper party?"

Nate laughed nervously. "No, I- I didn't mean it like that. Trust me, you can throw shindigs with the best of them." He laughed again. "It's just- _this_ particular holiday, you know?" He took a drink of punch.

"Yeah, I guess it does seem a little morbid." Nora replied. "Like celebrating someone's funeral or something." Then her expression turned solemn, like she was deep in thought. "Maybe it's just our way of… holding on, you know? Of trying to keep the memory of things like this alive." Nate was always amused by their tendency to bring darkness into lighthearted occasions. Bars, parties. Normally, he enjoyed being a buzzkill with his wife. But he didn't want to get too maudlin tonight.

"Either that," Nate said with a grin, "Or they'll just take any excuse to do some 'social drinking'."

Nora laughed. "Yeah. Speaking of which… did you notice Harry brought a whole _keg_ of beer?"

"I did. He brought a keg, and more than a few bottles of hard liquor." _Guess he was serious about giving himself alcohol-induced brain damage._

"Well," Nora stood up. "It _is_ a party." She kissed him on the cheek. "Have fun, okay?" She said, then disappeared back into the crowd.

Nate was prepared to do just that, until he noticed David step through the door, with the Overseer behind him. A few people raised their cups at them as they passed. David Farris and Lincoln Tracey. The old Overseer and the new, and two of the most respected people in the Vault. Nate stood up to greet them. "Lincoln!" He called over a few people.

Linc wove through them and shook Nate's hand. "Chief. Great party you got going. Looks like half the Vault's in here."

"Little over half, by my count. Credit to my wife for that. You here to say a few words?"

"What is this, a funeral? No, I'm here to celebrate!" Lincoln boomed, causing quite a few cheers. "As long as I'm Overseer, we'll always celebrate the Fourth of July." He continued. "Remember: America lives on in you!" A few more cheers. "Great party, Nate." He slapped Nate on the shoulder, then kept moving through the crowd. David passed by without a word. _What have they been up to?_

* * *

 **JULY 4, 2087. 8:48 P.M.** As the night moved on, the mood became progressively more jovial. The alcohol did a good job of loosening everyone up. The general conversations moved from their daily duties in the Vault and the cultural importance of preserving the Fourth of July, to rambling about how much they loved the drinks and music. Nate hardly ever drank, but tonight was… an occasion. He and Nora were slow dancing to "Give Us A Chance" on the cassette player. Or trying to, at least. It was a little difficult with Harry in the kitchen, waving an American flag and hollering 'The Star Spangled Banner' off key. "Hey, this music sucks!" He suddenly yelled. "Or maybe just my singing…" They didn't hear from him again until he pushed through the crowd to approach them. "Hey, do you guys have The Wanderer on cassette? By Dion? Or record? Do you have a record player?"

Nora groaned. "Urgh. Yes… we have The Wanderer."

"Great! I love that song. I'll go find it…" Then he sauntered off again.

"This is starting to feel less like the Fourth of July and more like a bachelor party." Nora said.

"You're right." Nate said. "Time for the fireworks?"

Nora smiled. "Yeah, I think it's about time."

"I'll go get the projector." Nate began making his way to the closet, stopping to chat with a few people in the meantime. _No rush, right?_ He found Shaun in the computer room, in a circle with a few of the other kids who showed up. They were gathered around a coffee table with a bunch of video game holodisks spread out on it, arguing over which one to play. Shaun's voice didn't carry much. Nate didn't envy him, being the youngest person in the Vault. He tapped his son on the shoulder. "Hey. Better get yourself to the living room. The fireworks show is about to start." He said.

"Fireworks?" Shaun asked as Nate walked off.

He was almost to the closet when Cindy ambushed him. "Nate!" She chirped, moving past a few people, drink in hand.

"Cindy." Nate responded. "Still avoiding your parents?"

"Not quite." She leaned in a little closer, so he could hear her without raising her voice. "I have it on good authority that we might be able to leave the Vault soon."

"What? Where did you hear that?"

"Well, it's not exactly a secret you guys have been surveying the surface for the last few months. _And_ the Vault Dweller's Survival Guide lists our Vault's 'total duration' as ten years." Cindy recited.

Nate snorted. "Couple things. First, the 'total duration' is only for a Vault at maximum capacity, which we are _far_ from. And second, we've been doing surveys since the first year we came down here. It's routine."

"Come on. You know I know the truth." She said teasingly.

"Who told you?"

She looked embarrassed. "Well… Dr. Grey. But only because I wouldn't stop bothering her about it."

Nate sighed. "Look… there'll be a time to talk about this with the whole Vault. Just try to enjoy the party, okay?" Cindy grumbled, and walked off.

Finally, Nate made it to the projector. He loaded the reel labeled 'FIREWORKS' into it, then hoisted it up. They were lucky Nora managed to find a tape like this in miscellaneous storage. _It's funny, the stuff they thought to pack down here before the bombs._ "Make way!" He shouted as he carried the projector into the living room. "Fireworks, coming through!" The crowd parted like the red sea as he moved through it. In the living room, Nora had already pulled down the projector screen. Everyone was gathered around it. "Tape's loaded in." Nate said as he set the projector on the table.

"Can't have a Fourth of July without fireworks!" James said, to some scattered agreement.

Nate noticed David across the room, sitting near Lincoln. _So much for just making an appearance._

"Alright. Shut the lights off!" Nora called, and sat down on the couch. Nate got the projector spinning, and sat down next to her. Shaun joined them as the film started. The chatter went down to a minimum, almost silent. A '3' flashed on the screen for a brief second, then disappeared. Then, the night sky appeared. Nate didn't know when this was filmed, or where. Judging by the light pollution, somewhere in the suburbs. Finally, a big firework exploded on the screen. A big white one first. Then… a grey one.

"Ah, it's not in color!" Someone shouted behind them. There was a general murmur of disappointment. Shaun and some of the other kids still seemed mesmerized, though. _At least there's sound._

As the fireworks continued, Nora snuggled in next to Nate, and he squeezed her hand. "You know what this reminds me of?" She whispered.

"What?" He whispered back.

"That Fourth of July in Boston. Remember? We watched the fireworks from the rooftop."

"Oh yeah! God, that was an amazing night." Nate tried to recall it. They went into the city to visit Nate's family at his Uncle's house, and announce their engagement. After they left, they decided to roam the city, seeing the various Fourth of July celebrations. They watched the parade, ate hot dogs, and walked and talked for hours. When night fell, they checked in one night at a cheap hotel just so they could go up to the roof, and get a good view of the fireworks. It was a clear, cool night in July. Perfect weather. Perfect day. "What year was that? '74?" He whispered to Nora.

"Yeah. Exactly thirteen years ago."

"Crazy." It felt like another life. The tape continued for about another five minutes. By the time it was finished, some people had gone back to their drinks and conversations. As the projector flickered off and the lights went up, Lincoln suddenly appeared in front of the screen.

He clinked his glass with a fork to get everyone's attention again. "Wow. Big thanks to Nate and Nora, for that wonderful visit to the past." He raised his glass to them, and there was some light applause. "It astounds me how, even after almost ten years down here, without any contact with the outside world, we still hold our American values." He gestured to the flag on their wall. "We still fly the American flag. We are still American citizens. Each and every one of us." Lincoln was an excellent speaker. That was one of the things that got him elected. He took a deep breath. "I'm grateful for that. I'm grateful that I can call our Vault a model example." _Where is he going with this?_ "When the day comes that we crawl out of our hole in the ground, our shelter, our salvation, and reunite with the government… I'll be proud to say that this is the group I led." He took a drink from his glass. "I'm sure many of you have wondered when that day would come. Well… wonder no longer. I chose tonight specifically to unveil this information to the Vault. I wanted it to be as symbolic as possible." _He cannot be serious._ "One week ago, our scientists confirmed what we have long hypothesized. It's been almost ten years since the bombs, and our world is finally livable again. The radiation is gone, folks."

There was a sudden clamor in the crowd as everyone began talking over each other. The mood had sobered so quick it was jarring. Nate stood up from the couch suddenly, and glowered at Lincoln. He gave Nate a look as if to say "don't spoil it". Nora and Shaun slowly rose next to him.

"Did you know about this?" Nora asked.

"I-"

"This means we can go back outside, right?" Shaun tugged at Nate's jumpsuit. Everyone was still talking at once, the volume rose as they began shouting their questions. Nate couldn't breathe.

"Settle down, people, settle down!" Lincoln shouted over the crowd. "I'd like us to remain at the standard we've set for ourselves." The noise slowly died down. "Now, I know this is very exciting news, but there will be an order to this. Starting with an advance team, to scout the surface area directly surrounding the Vault. Once we've confirmed there's no other dangers in the area, the rest of us will be free to leave." Talking started again, this time more calm. "I've assigned Security Chief Winters as head of the advance team. He'll take a team of his choosing to the surface with him, to report back to us."

"When will they be leaving?" Someone asked. Nate didn't know who. Maybe Zeke.

"Well, I imagine you've all had quite a lot to drink tonight, and will be feeling it in the morning… so we'll spend tomorrow prepping the trip, and they'll leave the day after that." The talking finally stopped. Everyone just stood there, thinking. "If anyone has any questions?" Lincoln asked.

"Uh…" Diane started, sounding nervous. "What will we _do_ when we get to the surface?" There was a murmur of agreement.

"The first thing we'll do is get on a radio, and try to contact the government. We've been in the dark too long. I'd like to find out how America is rebuilding. In the meantime, we'll probably set up shelter in the neighborhood just outside the Vault. Sanctuary, I believe it's called" He said. _Sanctuary Hills. Our old home._

"I can't believe it. This changes everything. I- I gotta tell Brett about this!" James suddenly said. The clamor exploded again as everyone fought to spread the news. More than half the Vault was at the party, but there was still a lot of people who didn't know. The party vanished like morning mist in the sun as almost everyone filed out the door.

Nate stood in the doorway and watched them leave. Harry shuffled by him, holding his head. "Man, that was a _hell_ of a party. And it's barely nine."

"Goodnight, Harry…" Nate said. He noticed David and Lincoln nearing the exit. _Were they really just going to leave without saying a word?_ He marched over to them and blocked their path. "You mind explaining to me what the fuck that was?" A few people turned their heads at them.

"Nate! There's… no need for that." Lincoln said, trying to shush him.

"I wasn't talking to you." He looked at David.

"Jesus, Nate. You act like I just shot your dog. This was the _plan_ , remember?" David said.

"No, the _plan_ was to wait until _after_ the party."

"Are you kidding me? We can finally go to the _surface_ , and you're worried about your _fucking party_?!"

"Boys!" Nora shouted. "What the hell?"

"I'm sorry." David sounded slightly embarrassed. He wasn't prone to outbursts. "It's just… didn't we all dream of going back? I thought this was what we wanted. What _you_ wanted." He said to Nate.

"I did want it. Until I realized I had a son to raise."

"And you have raised him. But this is happening, Nate. Get out of denial. For your own good." With that, he walked off.

Lincoln lingered awkwardly for a moment. "For the record, I didn't know of any plan. I just thought here would be a good place to announce it when I learned about the sensor data."

"Well, he didn't stop you." Nate cleared his throat. "Anyways, it was wonderful having you here, Overseer. Now if you would please?" He gestured to the door.

Lincoln grunted. "My office, tomorrow at noon. We'll discuss the plan for the surface." Nate nodded, and Lincoln exited.

Then, they were alone. Finally, the house was empty, except for the only people Nate cared to see. Nora let out an exhausted sigh, and leaned against the couch. "Whew. God. That was a lot to take in." She said.

Nate collapsed onto the couch. "I know."

Shaun finally moved from his spot in the corner. "Um, can I go to Sally Callahan's house?" He asked. "I want to hear what people are saying."

Nate nodded. "Okay. But I want you back by eleven." _And then there were two._ Nate sighed, then went to the kitchen and poured some bourbon from a half-empty bottle. He went to the table and sat down. "It's gonna be chaos." He said, mostly to himself.

Nora eventually wandered over and sat across from him. "So… that argument."

"You agree with me, right? What's the point of going up to the surface right now? I mean, I can understand in a few years, when Shaun's older, but-"

"Nate." Nora stopped him. "I want to ask you something."

He looked at her for a second. "What?"

"You guys were talking about a 'plan'."

"...Yeah."

"A plan to tell us that we could leave the Vault?"

"I-" Nate started, then swallowed. "Well yeah, we'd been doing surveys of the surface with a robot. Testing the waters, you know."

"So, you know we would be going up to the surface, and you just sat on it? Why didn't you say anything?

"I was going to tell you. And we hadn't known about it for a week, that was a lie. We only confirmed it this afternoon." Nate slouched down in his chair. "Actually, that's not true. I wouldn't have told you. If it were up to me, we would stay down here, in this little fantasy forever." He sighed. "David was right. I am in denial." He took another drink. "And now the whole Vault knows. And they're all gonna want to leave." He sat up, and turned to Nora. "Am I selfish, for wanting to hold onto this? We've made a nice life down here… safe, and simple. A community. I feel like, if we go to the surface, all of that will change."

Nora was silent for a while, presumably thinking about what he said. "You're right." She finally said. "Things probably will change. But… that's kind of the nature of things, isn't it? I mean, we lived through the end of the world, Nate. Things _have_ changed. We used to live in a house that we owned, with the sky above our heads. Don't you want to go back? Don't you want to start the next chapter of our lives?"

 _I know this is what I have to do._ Nate wasn't afraid for himself. He wasn't even afraid for Nora. He knew she was capable of surviving. He was afraid for Shaun. _What kind of life will he have up there? What kind of person will he grow to be?_ But that's what Nate and Nora were there for. _No matter what, we'll protect him. No matter what._

He took a deep breath. "You're right. We have to keep moving forward." And that was that. They were leaving the Vault. Nate felt like burden had been lifted from him. He hadn't even realized how heavy it was until it was gone. He couldn't help but laugh with relief. He looked back at Nora. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

* * *

 **JULY 5, 2087. 12:04 P.M.** The following day, the atmosphere in the Vault was electric. 74 people, all talking about the exact same thing. Everyone had their own ideas of what the surface would be like, what they would do when they got there. Nate spent the morning walking the Vault, getting opinions, hearing theories, ranging from banal to bizarre.

"I bet you we get there, and everything's just rebuilt." Brett O'Keefe had said. "Come on, it's been ten years."

Jane Presper's theory was rather disheartening. "I've done the math. Odds are, we'll be the only people left alive in the entire Boston area. Not counting the horrifying mutant abominations, of course."

"What if we can't even breathe up there?" Arthur Able interjected. "I mean, wouldn't the air be poisonous after the A-bomb?"

"You've been reading too many comic books, old man." Don told him.

Regardless of their theories or ideas, one thing was certain: everyone wanted to leave. And Nate had accepted that. That's what he told himself as he walked to the Overseer's office at noon.

"Four minutes late." Lincoln said as he stepped through the door. "I'm going to assume you were busy with something- oh. Hello Nora."

Nora came in behind Nate. "Overseer."

"Have you come to listen in on the meeting? I suppose that's prudent, considering-"

"Actually, I've selected her as part of my team. To go to the surface with me." Nate cut him off.

"Wh- _Nora_? Absolutely not! She's the magistrate! We can't risk losing her by sending her to the surface, how would the Vault function if she died?" Lincoln sputtered.

"I think I remember you saying I could choose the team, sir." Nate said coyly.

"Yes, picking reasonable people, not vital personnel who have no training."

"If I may," Nora spoke up. "Even if something were to happen to me, I've already taught Jenny Anders almost everything I know. She could easily replace me."

"And besides" Nate said, "If the surface is as safe as you say it is, there should be nothing to worry about."

Lincoln hummed. "Well… as long as we have all of our bases covered. We'll all be going up there eventually…"

Nate and Nora finally sat down. Lincoln was at his desk, David and Elizabeth were sat in chairs across from him. Together, they all formed a circle in the office.

In truth, Nora coming with the survey team was almost entirely Nate's idea. He approached her about it that morning at breakfast, and she seemed enthusiastic. Partly, it was about Nate wanting some measure of control in his life, which felt like it was spiraling out of control. But it was also about honoring a promise he had made, years ago. The promise that no matter what horrors the next world threw at them, they would face it together.

"So, it's you and Nora on the survey team, so far." David finally spoke up. "Did you have anyone else in mind?"

Nate cleared his throat. "Yeah. I figured it should be mostly security personnel. I've got Isaac, Francine, and Don." He made eye contact with David. "And you. Since I know you're so eager to go up there."

"That's right, I am." David said calmly.

"And we need a scientist."

"Okay." Lincoln said. "So six, total. Alright. Now, Elizabeth. Why don't you go over what we can expect up there?"

"Well, you've seen the data. But to put it simply… the world's changed. The radiation is mostly gone, but the damage is already done. I can't imagine many plant or animal species have survived, and whatever has is likely to be mutated and deadly. And… all we have to do is bring the elevator down to see it's cold, and cloudy up there. Like a winter that won't end." Elizabeth sighed. "We can't sugarcoat this part, people. It's going to be harsh up there."

They all let that sink in for a moment. Then, David broke the silence. "You gonna tell them the rest?"

"Right." She cleared her throat. "Well, my theory is that, according to the data we've collected, the cloud layer is receding. And with that, temperatures are rising. Whether that will be permanent, or part of some kind of cycle, only time will tell."

"So, things could be getting better?" Nora asked.

"Yes. They could be."

"That's wonderful to hear." Lincoln said. "Now, for our next item, the plan for the expedition itself. Nate, as our chief of security, and an apparent former resident of Sanctuary, I leave that to you."

"Alright. Well, if we intend on making Sanctuary Hills our new camp, then the first thing we need to do is sweep and clear the neighborhood, make sure we're the only ones there. Then we set up a perimeter, and keep watch. Once we're sure it's safe, we can start sending more people up." Nate reasoned it out as he went, recalling his time in the army, securing locations to make camp.

"That sounds like a sound plan. You'll have the rest of the day to refine it, and rehearse it with your security personnel." Lincoln flipped through a few of the papers on his desk. "Hm. Well, that went quicker than expected. That should about cover it, unless anyone has anything else?" No one spoke up. "Alright." He sat up in his chair, and everyone else followed suit. "8 o'clock tomorrow morning, you'll head out."

They were almost back home, fifteen minutes later. "Tomorrow morning." Nora said. "Guess I've got the rest of today to spend twiddling my thumbs."

"I'm gonna spend the next few hours doing drills. Maybe you wanna come?"

"As _exciting_ as that sounds… I'd rather not make an ass of myself in front of your cop friends.

Nate laughed. "Come on, they were all like that at some point." Nate's security team was formed entirely from volunteers, who had no prior experience. There was Isaac Kerr, who came in the Vault at age 14 with only his younger brother Danny. Their parents had signed them up, but weren't home when the bombs fell, and didn't make it in time. Francine Kirkland lived with her grandfather, who died just before the bombs. Don Holden apparently stole money from his rich parents to get himself and his wife into the Vault, when they were both only 17. Finally there was Christine Beck, who basically raised her younger sister Nancy, and bought space in the Vault for them. When Nate first formed the security team, they all seemed hopeless. Couldn't even hold a gun properly. But over time, he molded them into proper officers. "Someday, I'm gonna teach you how to use a gun." He said to Nora.

"How about after we go to the surface?"

"Deal."

They arrived at their door. "Alright." Nora said. "I'll see you tonight, I guess."

"See you tonight." He gave her a goodbye kiss.

As he made his walk to the security office, Nate's thoughts drifted to his old neighborhood. He couldn't help but wonder what they would find… what would be left. _Will we just move back in to our house? Pick up where we left off?_ Even if they cleaned up the rubble and buried all the bones, it would still be a graveyard. _No_ , Nate decided. It would never be the same. Their old house would likely just be a shelter from the cold, not the home it used to be.

A voice brought him back to the present. "Nate! Er- Mr. Winters!" He turned to see Cindy catching up to him. "There you are. You're never in your office."

"What's up, Cindy?" Nate asked.

"Where are you going? You planning the trip to the surface?"

"No. We just finished with that."

Her expression fell a little. "Oh. Well, I wanted to ask you- no, tell you. Well, I guess ask you. But- I want to join the survey team."

"No." Nate replied flatly, without even thinking about it.

"Just like that? Come on, N- Mr. Winters, I'm not a kid anymore!"

"You'll always be a kid to me, kid."

"I promise, I won't slow you down!"

Nate couldn't help but chuckle. "That's not it, Cindy." He thought about it for a moment. "Why are you in such a hurry, anyways? Everyone's going up there, eventually."

"I don't want my first trip to the surface to be spoiled by fifty other people trampling over each other like a herd of cows."

"That's not a very good reason." Nate sighed. "Look, have you asked your parents?"

"I was going to. If you said yes."

"Go ask them. If they say yes… I'll take you. And _don't_ tell them I already said you could go." Nate pointed his finger at her. He wasn't normally so stern with her, but he had to take his responsibilities as Security Chief seriously.

"Alright, alright." She took off down the hallway, then stopped. "Where can I find you afterward?" She asked.

"In my office." Nate said, turning away.

* * *

 **JULY 5, 2087. 7:10 P.M.** Several grueling hours later, Nate dragged himself through the doorway into his house. The lights were dim, and Nora was laying on the couch. The muted TV bathed her in a white light. She sat up as he came in. "You're back." She said. "I was just watching an old movie on holo."

Nate fell into the armchair next to the couch. "With no sound?" He mumbled.

"Well, the dialogue was crap, but the special effects are something." Nate laughed, then groaned, stretching back in the chair. "So… how were your drills?" Nora asked him.

"Long, and… repetitive. They did a great job of showcasing just how out of shape we are." He sighed. "Ah, we'll be fine. We'll have guns and bulletproof vests."

"You really think we'll run into trouble up there?"

"Honestly? No. I think it'll just be dead. Abandoned." They watched the TV for a moment. "By the way, Cindy Cofran is coming with us. She practically begged me to join the survey team… and her parents said it was okay."

Nora snorted. "You made her ask her parents? She's- what is she, 21? You were younger than that when you joined the army."

"That wasn't exactly my choice." _It was my father's._ Nate looked around the room. "Where's Shaun?"

"Said he was going to Sally's again."

"Is she…?"

"His little girlfriend? I don't know. But I feel like we've been seeing less and less of him lately."

Nate sighed. "His whole world's about to be turned upside down."

"We both know it's for the best. He can't spend his whole life down here."

 _We've had this argument._ He rose from the armchair and kissed Nora on the cheek. "You're right, honey." He staggered off down the hallway. "I'm beat. Think I'm gonna head to bed. Remember, we've got an early morning tomorrow."

"Alright… goodnight." Nora called after him.

* * *

 **JULY 6, 2087. 7:58 A.M.** Nate finished strapping on his vest. He turned to see everyone else still struggling with theirs. "Here, honey." He helped Nora into hers.

"Shoulda went to the drills." Nora said, chuckling.

They were gathered in the entrance room. Eight of them in total, the survey team and Overseer Tracey, standing by the door control. Barely a word was said between them all morning, the anticipation was palpable. The day had come. Ten years worth of questions were about to be answered.

Nate took a deep, shaky breath. "Okay, people, let's do an equipment check. Weapons locked and loaded?" Everyone checked their pistols, chambering a round, testing the slide and magazine release. "Keep your safeties on for now." He followed up. "Francine, RadAway?"

She patted the duffel bag slung over her shoulder. "Check."

"David, geiger counter?"

He tapped it with his finger. "Fully functioning and fully charged."

Nate turned to Don. "Don, extra ammo?"

"Check."

"Isaac, stimpaks?"

Isaac was carrying a metal case full of them. "Check."

Lincoln stepped forward. "We'll have the EML standing by here when you get back, just in case." He observed the survey team. "Remember, your goal is to scout the neighborhood and secure it. Don't risk going any further than that." Nate nodded at him. "Alright. If everyone's ready-" He pulled the adapter plug from his PIP-Boy, and went through the door opening sequence.

Nate stood by, bracing for the usual cold wind. Then he remembered. As the orange lights flashed above them, he pulled off his bomber jacket and gave it to Nora. She took it, and gave him a somewhat puzzled look. "I know you don't like the cold." He said. She smiled at him, and pulled it on over her vest.

The cog door was pulled open, and the sound of scraping metal pierced the air. The catwalk extended. Nate's heart was pounding. "Good luck, all of you. We're counting on you." Lincoln said. The survey team marched across the catwalk, clanging on the metal as they went. The elevator was waiting for them at the bottom, and the gate went up as they descended the stairs. Nate stopped in front of the elevator platform. Everyone gathered behind him.

"If anyone wants to back out, now's the time." He looked back. No one budged. He smiled. "Alright. Let's go see the world… or what's left of it."


	4. Second Chance

_Author's Note: I've decided to split this chapter into two parts for now, just so you can read what I've written so far. This chapter took inspiration from the novel The Road, by Cormac McCarthy, and I think it's where the story really begins in earnest. I'll update it with the second part as soon as I write it, so for now, please enjoy part 1. UPDATE: Part 2 is now up! Sorry for the long wait, this took me far longer to write than I thought it would. From now on, I'll try to make the chapters shorter, so I can upload with more frequency._

* * *

 **JULY 6, 2087. 8:01 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** A bright light shone above Nora, and a piercing cold wind came whipping down the elevator shaft. She looked up. _Clouds._ Thick, dreary, miserable things, yet Nora couldn't help but smile at them. The elevator continued ascending, grinding and straining like some ancient beast. The light became more intense, until it was nearly blinding. And finally the cog shaped elevator platform slid into place at the top with a great metallic _ching_. And they were back.

Everyone shielded their eyes, and turned away from the blazing sun to the east. Eventually their eyes adjusted, and the morning light became bearable, and they were greeted by a grey world. Snow and ash, everywhere you looked. Piled on top of each other. Mixed together in muddled ploughs, threatening to bury the old metal crates strewn about. No one spoke. All they could do was take in the landscape. The mountains to the northwest were completely white. Shrouded in fog. Every tree in sight was withered and dead, their branches like bony fingers rocking in the wind. Nora turned back to the east. She walked across the platform, toward the edge of the hill. The yellows and blues of the hatch still shone through, but they were splotched with reddish brown rust. Covered in brown leaves and snow. The whisper of distant wind and Nora's boots on the cold metal were the only sounds.

Past the mangled, rusted chain link fence, at the foot of the hill, lay Sanctuary Hills. Or rather, its corpse. From that distance, she could already see some of the houses had collapsed. A few of them just looked like heaps of snow and rusted metal, languishing on their foundations.

Nate followed her to the edge, and joined her in surveying the incinerated landscape. "There it is." he said quietly.

"You were right." Nora said. "It is dead out here." Across the river, the charred forest stretched to the horizon. Its fallen leaves long buried in ash. She looked to the southwest, trying to remember exactly where the explosion came from. She couldn't see a crater. Only endless barren waste. Far in the distance, the tiny silhouette of the Mass Fusion building in Boston could be made out. _So it's still standing._

It took Nora a while to realize that feeling had come back. The feeling of nothingness. _This must be how I deal with pain,_ she realized. _I just cauterize it._ She tried to shake it off.

Nate put his hand on her shoulder. "Come on. Let's get a closer look." Nora turned away. The others had spread out a little, plodding around in the ashen dirt near the hatch. She noticed a few corpses slumped over next to the control station. Dried to leather, their tattered dresses and slacks still clinging to them. _They tried to get into the Vault._ Past them, Holden was rummaging around in the control station. After a moment, he came and peered at them through the broken window. "Anything?" Nate asked.

"Yeah, actually. I think these yellow crates are packed with supplies. Stimpaks, Rad-X." He came walking down the ramp with a few chems in hand.

"They might be contaminated. Give them here." David said, pulling out his geiger counter. Don handed off the stimpak, and David passed the geiger counter over it a few times. Nothing.

"Alright. We'll search the yellow crates as we go. Let's get moving, people." Nate said.

"Anyone else having second thoughts about this?" Isaac Kerr spoke up. "I mean, how are we gonna live up here? I knew it'd be bad, but I didn't think it'd be _this_ bad."

"It's getting better." David said defensively. "The clouds'll go away, it'll warm up. We just have to wait."

They made their way down the hill. Nora remembered the construction equipment, cars. Everything was as the old world had left it, but blackened on one side. Cindy took a step on the ash, and a stream of particles rose from her bootprint, suspended in the air. _I feel like I'm in a dream._ They passed a streak of sludge in the dirt that looked like it might have tracks in it. But they couldn't be sure. Other than that, no sign of life. The going was slow, stopping to scavenge crates, checking for radiation. After ransacking the small trailer by the fence, they approached the gate. It was a grisly sight. More corpses, just as mummified as the others, huddled by the gate. All in varying stages of death throes. Some crawling on their stomach, others clinging to the fence. Some simply laying on their backs, their leathery faces contorted in agony.

Isaac grimaced and covered his mouth. "God…"

"We knew there'd be corpses out here." Francine said. "At least we won't have to worry about diseases from them." _Even bacteria couldn't survive out here_.

They quickly stepped over the bodies and trudged further down the hill. A breeze laden with grey snow blew over them, and they all shivered in unison. "It better get warmer fast…" Isaac grumbled.

Nora remembered coming up this hill once before. In a world with green grass and orange trees, and a yellow sun. In another life. This world's sun was pale and hazy, and seemed to engulf the sky. It looked old and dying.

"So what's the plan for securing this place?" Don asked.

"Well… Sanctuary Hills is technically an island. Surrounded by a river. So we just secure the island." Nate explained.

"Simple enough."

"We'll go through the houses first, then sweep the rest. And under no circumstances will we be splitting up." He continued.

The feeble sound of the stream grew louder as they tread toward it. Sun rays cast through the dead grey oak tree gave the scene an almost heavenly air. The little bridge over the creek was still intact, save warped and burned. Nate passed over it first, his boots leaving behind little pieces of snow on the wood. Nora crossed next. It creaked and sagged under her weight. She doubted the integrity of it. David was after her. Again it creaked, before suddenly buckling under him. Half the bridge fell inward, splashing into the water, bringing David with it.

"Fucking- goddamnit!" He shouted, trying to clamber over the bridge onto land. Nate and Nora rushed to help. They each took a hand, pulling him over to the other side.

"Are you alright?" Nate asked him, sounding worried.

"Agh… I'm fine. But the water… is probably radioactive." And he had plenty of it on his boots. He brandished the geiger counter again and ran it over them. Still just the usual intermittent click. He frowned, and shook it a little. "What, is this thing broken?"

"Try it on the stream." Nate said.

He knelt at the bank, and held the geiger counter over the lightly rushing water. It was murky and russet colored, and seemed polluted even if it wasn't radioactive. "Amazing." David said. "I would have bet anything the water would still be radioactive out here." He stood up. "Even so, we shouldn't drink this water before testing it."

"Wasn't planning to." Don said on the other side. "So how do we get across now? Just jump it?"

"It's not much of a distance." Nate said. "Here, it's narrowest where we are. Jump, and we'll make sure you don't fall in." And so they did. Don, Francine, Cindy, and Isaac, jumped one by one until everyone was across. "We'll have to replace that bridge." Nate muttered.

"Gah, my feet are freezing now." David rubbed his arms together, quaking.

"These trees look plenty flammable. We'll build you a fire inside one of the houses." Don told him. He began snapping off branches.

They were on the final approach to the neighborhood. Nora wasn't sure she was ready to see it up close. But, like a great deal of things in her life, it was happening whether she was ready or not. She gripped the cuff of her jacket in anticipation. They crested the incline, and stepped forward into the street. The first thing she did was look over at their old house. It was still standing. Most of them were, in fact. They stood twisted, gnarled parodies of their old selves, but they stood all the same.

The sound of the stream was gone by then. The sound of everything was gone. Nora had never known silence like this. It made her ears ring and her heart pound. It was absolutely haunting.

"Honey," Nate called her back. "Are you alright?" She turned to him. "It's just… you've been really quiet."

"Look at everything…" was all she could choke out.

"I know." Nate said grimly.

"What are we gonna do? How are we gonna fix all this?"

Nate sighed. "There's a lot of us… and we've got the rest of our lives to do it." Nora just stared ahead, trying to look convinced. "You said it yourself. We've got to keep moving forward."

Nora took a deep breath. "You're right. Just one foot in front of the other." She strode past him. "Come on, David. We'll show you our old house. Get a fire going." She had resolved to bury her emotions in some dark corner of her mind and simply do what needed to be done. The rest followed as she marched toward the house.

The old street was cracked and crushed like a thin layer of ice hit by a hammer. Old leaves piled at the edges, blocking the grey slush sliding down the drainways. Discarded refuse lying in sorry heaps on the sidewalk. The dead privet hedges topped with a thin layer of ash. _This place is a nightmare. No. Push it away._

They stopped in front of the house. "Is this it?" David asked.

"Yeah." It seemed no more ruined than the others. Windows broken and gaping, panels missing, roof sagging. But Nora stopped dead when she noticed the bushes. The old white rose shrubs were just as wilted and lifeless as every other plant, but they were _trimmed_. The bushes in every other yard had long since grown into wild, sprawling briars, but theirs were as clippered as the day the bombs fell. Nora noticed the sheared twigs lying around the bush. They hadn't blown away or been covered by snow. This had happened recently. Her heart skipped a beat. _Is someone here?_

Then she heard the sound, coming from the backyard. The familiar metallic drone, like a tiny jet turbine. _No… not someone. Something._ Everyone else heard it too, because they all pointed their guns over at the carport. Finally, out hovered Codsworth. Badly rusted, venting exhaust, one eye cracked and wandering.

"Codsworth!" Nate shouted behind her. "You're still here!" Everyone lowered their guns.

He hovered toward them, wavering slightly. As he came closer, Nora noticed his eye lens were caked with ash. "...Sir? Mum? Is it… is that really you?"

"Codsworth…" Nora breathed out. She approached him, slowly, like she would a frightened, wounded animal. She raised her hand to his eye and wiped the ash off of it.

A small laugh escaped Codsworth's speaker. "As I live and _breathe_! You- you came back!"

Nate joined them. "Of course we came back, Codsworth. We just had to get somewhere safe from the bombs."

"It's been years! Where… did you go?"

"Underground." Nate said. "We lived there for a long time… but we're coming back now. All of us."

Codsworth's gaze drifted behind them, to the rest of the survey team. "Is… the lad Shaun with you? I imagine he'd be about ten by now."

"He stayed behind." Nora told him. "But he's safe. I can't wait for you to meet him, Codsworth." She turned to the others. "Everyone, this is Codsworth. Our butler." They all stammered out awkward greetings. "Let's get inside."

They moved single file through the threshold, the old metal creaking above them. Their door was gone, no sign of it anywhere. Nate laughed incredulously. "I still can't believe you're _here_ , Codsworth. I thought you would have left a long time ago."

"Sir, I would rather be torn apart to scrap than be derelict in my duty." He stopped in the middle of their battered living room. "Of course… there wasn't much I could do anyways." He lamented. Their old metal hearth was also missing, apparently ripped from the wall.

"It's alright, Codsworth. We couldn't expect you to clean up after an atom bomb."

Nora moved to the couch and began pulling on it. "Nate, help me move this. Everyone, clear a space on the floor." They turned the couch and pulled it closer to the window. "That's where we'll put the fire."

Codsworth clanked loudly. "A _fire_ in the living room?! If I wasn't programmed to obey your every command, mum, I would strongly protest this."

"The floor's already ruined. And we're cold." Don stepped forward and laid the broken branches and twigs out on the floor. Nora scooped up an illegible sheet of newspaper for tinder. "Codsworth. If you could do the honors?"

Codsworth lowered his flamethrower arm and sprayed a brief jet of flame on the pile. It smoldered for a moment, smoking. Nora worried the wood might be too damp. But then the fire caught, casting a dull orange glow over them. They gathered around it like moths.

"We can stay here for a bit and rest." Nate said. Their party set down their cases and bags and guns, and settled around the fire. Nate and Nora took the couch. David pulled his boots off and set them near the flames to dry. The room slowly grew warmer. Nora sat watching the smoke rise and escape through the holes in the ceiling, blackening the panels as it went.

Minutes went by in silence. Nothing but the crackling of the fire, and the occasional bitter wind whistling through the walls. The warmth was making Nora drowsy. She nestled up on the couch, resting her head on her knees. She gazed at the meager fire, glimmering there like the first new light of humanity. _This will be our future,_ Nora thought. Ragged tribes of sullen people hunching over campfires. Her grandchildren wouldn't understand computers. Their grandchildren might worship them as idols. _Is that a cynical prediction?_

She looked up, and noticed Codsworth shuffling around in the kitchen. _He's done a good job of keeping this place clean… relatively speaking._ No leaves or snow had found their way into the house. The furniture was arranged properly, despite being faded and dusty. What little items were left were in the appropriate places. A bread box, coffee tin… baby bottles.

Nate rose suddenly, breaking her train of thought. "You guys can take the couch. I'm gonna go look around." He looked at Nora. "Wanna join me?"

Nora stood next to him. "I suppose we should survey the damage."

The rest of the house was more of the same. Codsworth's fuel can was still in the laundry room, apparently what he was using to fuel himself all this time. He explained to them how shortly after the bombs, the whole neighborhood was looted by panicked survivors. His eye was damaged by one of them wielding a metal pipe, but Codsworth's buzzsaw won out. "I… I killed him." Codsworth explained tearfully. "Buried him in the backyard."

"Jesus Christ." Nate said.

Most of their possessions were long gone, stolen by anonymous survivors. Mercifully, a lot of photos and personal items were left behind. Nora began gathering them up and storing them in her jacket pockets. Their old room was similarly ransacked. The bed frame looked like it had been broken apart for firewood, and the mattress had been taken. All their winter clothes, gone.

"There was one thing… I thought I should safekeep." Codsworth said. He moved past Nora, over to the bed. With one hand, he lifted the bed frame and pulled it out of the way. They watched intently as he flipped back the rug. Underneath it lay a small piece of paper, still seemingly in good condition. He handed it to Nora, and she gave a great sigh.

"My law degree." Memories flooded in. All those late nights at college. The philosophical musings with her classmates. Her dreams of being some hotshot lawyer. The remembrance of that hit her like a cold knife. _We used to have dreams._ "Thank you… Codsworth." She finally said.

They checked Shaun's room last. Everything was as it once had been, but weathered and worn. _I guess no one needs baby clothes anymore._ Pitch black speculation, but probably true.

"I guess Shaun can move back in here," Nate declared. "Once we get rid of all this baby stuff." He looked at Nora coyly. "Unless… we have a reason to hold onto it?"

"Not the time, honey."

Back in the living room, they found David pulling his boots back on. "There." He said. "Plenty dry." The fire was down to embers. They had no reason to rekindle it right now.

"Everyone ready to keep moving?" Nate asked. They all rose, gathering up their things. "Codsworth, I'm assuming you know the neighborhood. Anything we should be worried about?"

"Oh, not a soul, I'm afraid, sir. I've been quite lonely."

"No animals, or… creatures?"

Codsworth's eye narrowed. "Well, now that you mention it, I did manage to spot a monstrously large _rat_ , if you can believe it, scurrying down the Jahani's driveway."

"When was this?" Nate asked.

"Oh, maybe five or six years ago."

"Hm. Alright. Codsworth, you can stay here, while we go make sure the neighborhood is safe."

Then they were back out in the street, with only the cold to greet them. "I feel better knowing he's here." Cindy said. "If nothing's happened to him, it must be safe."

"Probably. But we're gonna do a sweep just to be sure." Nate replied.

The rest of the neighborhood was more of the same. The same hollow, decaying grayness. The massive oak tree in the center of the cul-de-sac had turned the color of stone, just a hulking leafless skeleton. They peeked inside the remaining houses, resolving to leave cleanup duty to whoever moved into them. As expected, the neighborhood was completely abandoned. Completely looted. And completely and utterly dead.

After a while, Nate gave permission to split up. The security officers and Cindy went wandering around in the houses. David stayed in the cul-de-sac and began collecting ash samples. Nora decided to walk down to the river, by the southern embankment. She sat with her feet over the edge, watching the small ice drifts float by. Then she turned her gaze to the forest on the other side. Watching for any kind of movement, anything. The trees didn't even sway.

She heard boots crunching down the hill behind her. She turned to see Nate making his way over. He joined her without a word and they sat together watching the stillness for a while. "So… what do you think?" He finally asked her. "You still want to make a go of this?"

Nora sighed. "This whole world looks like it's ready to just crumble and blow away in the wind. I think I'm doubting our ability to fix it."

"It's the only one we've got. Unfortunately."

She chuckled. "I guess the only thing we can do is wait and see if it gets better."

He placed his hand in hers. "It will. I'm sure of it." _Nothing but a hope and a promise. But it's all I need from him._ They lingered a little longer, taking in the desolation. Then Nate said, "I suppose we should be getting back. Report the all clear."

Nora squeezed his hand. "I'm with you."

* * *

 **JULY 6, 2087. 9:16 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** The walk back was quick. Ultimately they were eager to return to the warmth and comfort of the Vault. Nora was thinking about the photos they found in their house. _We finally have something to show Shaun, from before._

"I want to get these ash and soil samples back to the lab. See how best to proceed with planting crops." David said.

"So, what are we going to do with the Vault after we all leave?" Cindy asked. "Just leave it abandoned?"

"I guess we'll try to use as much as we can from it. Bring everything useful outside. I suppose as a last resort, we could move back into it temporarily, if the going gets too tough out here." Nate said.

"Just as a last resort?"

"Yeah. The point of this is that we don't need the Vault anymore. It was always temporary…" He trailed off.

They passed by the bodies again, hopefully for the last time. Soon, a cleanup team would be sent to bury or otherwise dispose of them. A mass grave seemed harsh, but laying their neighbors and countrymen to rest felt long overdue.

On the final stretch back to the hatch, the sky darkened, and the air became almost impossibly still. Even more so than before. Nora looked up to see snowflakes drifting down. Their party stopped for a moment to recall and observe the half-forgotten phenomenon. It was a silent, weak snowfall, but remarkable all the same. Ahead of Nora, Cindy laughed and caught one of the snowflakes in her hand.

"Look," She turned to them, "It's snowing." There was an ear-splitting crack, and a flash from the northern woods. Cindy jerked violently, and a red fountain gushed from the side of her head as a bullet tore through. Nate was splattered with blood, and stood frozen as she fell to the ground. He remained that way, mouth agape, paralyzed, for what seemed like an age. Nora looked back to where the flash came from. Far in the distance, white blurs moved between the trees. Ghosts. Another flash erupted and the next bullet hit Nate in the vest. He fell backward with a pained scream.

There was no time to think. Another bullet, and someone would die for sure. She ripped the pistol out of its holster and pointed it toward the woods, firing rapidly and blindly. The others followed suit, sending a hail of bullets toward their attackers. A deafening cacophony ripped through the previously silent world, threatening to shake the ash from the trees. But it soon stopped when they ran out of bullets.

One heartbeat. Two heartbeats. Silence. "HURRY!" Nora shrieked, and they scrambled. Nate was sprawled on his back, clutching his vest. Nora yanked him onto his feet, and put his arm around her shoulder. Don knelt down and carried Cindy, limp and bleeding. They stampeded back toward the hatch. Francine ran ahead of them, into the control station. She frantically sequenced the elevator with her PIP-Boy and smashed the ignition button.

Nora looked back to the woods as Francine sprinted to the elevator platform. No movement. But they were completely exposed on the hatch. Completely at the mercy of their assailants. It was the longest five seconds of Nora's life. More terrifying than watching an atomic explosion rush toward her. Finally the elevator went down, and the woods fell out of sight. There was a collective sigh of relief as they plunged into the darkness again. Nora's question from ten years ago had been answered, she realized, sitting in that all too familiar situation. The culmination of the day's events came crashing down on her. She had returned to hell on Earth.

* * *

 **JULY 6, 2087. 9:18 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** Nora's heart frantically pounding in her chest drowned out her thoughts. Her ears were ringing from the gunfire. After a moment, she noticed a rapid dripping sound. Blood on the metal. _Cindy._

Suddenly Nate gasped for air beside her, and coughed a few times. "Nate!" Nora shouted. "Nate, are you alright?!"

He groaned, and began fumbling at his vest. "Help- help me take…" She reached over and tried to help him. It was dark and her hands were shaking, but they managed to undo one of the straps. The vest opened up. Nate dragged his arm from her shoulder and fell to his hands. "Cindy…" He croaked out between heaving breaths, "Is she… alright?"

It was still dark. No one could see Cindy's condition. "I don't know," Don replied, his voice shaking. "She's not moving… she was shot in the head, Nate."

"I know." Nate said quietly. "And I just stood there…" He added, under his breath.

Light flooded in as they reached the bottom. Cindy was still slumped over in Don's arms, the side of her head soaked with blood. It had run across her face and was dripping off the right side. Her eyes were also closed, which was a good thing. If they were open, she would be indisputably dead.

Lincoln stood at the top of the stairs, to greet them. "Our heroes return!" He called, chuckling. The gate lifted, and his smile vanished instantly. "Oh my god. What happened?!" He rushed down the stairs.

They all finally stood. "Lincoln!" Nora shouted, putting Nate's arm around her shoulder again. "Where's Javier? Is he in the EML?"

"Wh- I…" Lincoln stammered.

"We need a surgeon! _Is he in the EML?!_ "

"Yes!" He shouted. They all took off back into the Vault with Don in front, still carrying Cindy. "Are you going to tell me what happened?!" Lincoln screamed again.

"Cindy was shot. Don't know who, don't know why, don't know fucking anything." Nora said.

"What happened to Nate?" Lincoln asked.

"It's Cindy's blood…" Nate muttered.

They barrelled back through the entrance door, and Lincoln gripped Nora's shoulder. "You and Nate stay here. The rest of you, get her to the medical lab. Go!" He barked. Nora watched as the rest of them raced down the hallway. He turned back to her. "I want to know exactly what happened out there, right now."

Nora swallowed. "We did what we went to do. We scouted the neighborhood, and we were ambushed on our way back."

"By who?"

"I don't know. We didn't get a good look at them. They were in the forest… they might have been camouflaged."

Lincoln sighed. "They just attacked you, without provocation? Why would they do that?"

"If I had to guess…" Nate started, "They wanted our PIP-Boys. To get inside the Vault. They were probably watching us the whole time…"

Nora stood in silence, trying to think of what to say to that. For the first time, she had to consider the very real possibility that people on the surface would want what they have. It was frightening.

"You're sure there was more than one of them?" Lincoln asked.

"I… I think so." Nora said. "Yeah, I definitely remember seeing movement in more than one spot. What do you think, Nate?"

"Uh… yeah. More than one, less than five." He frowned and looked to the side, as if he wanted to add something.

"What a goddamn mess." Lincoln growled. "I'm gonna have sixty people wanting to know what's going on." He paced around with his hands on his hips, probably thinking of what to tell them. Finally, he looked up. "You two can go now. See to Cindy in the infirmary."

They turned from each other, and went in opposite directions. Nate and Nora held an uncomfortable silence for most of the walk to the EML. Then, Nate spoke up. "He's right. There's gonna be a panic." He took his arm off her shoulder. "I can walk."

He lagged behind her a bit, with his hand to his chest, obviously in pain. "You should have Jessica look at that." Nora said.

" _No._ She'll have her hands full with Cindy. I don't want anyone wasting their time on me."

"What's the matter with you?"

Nate stopped, and sighed. "I just stood there. I just _froze._ "

"Nate… we all froze. None of us could have seen that coming."

"It was my responsibility, to keep everyone safe. And I failed." He kept his head low, not looking at her.

"It's not your fault, honey. Please. Don't blame yourself for this."

He sniffed. "Either way, I'm not going to spend any more time pouting about it. We're gonna regroup, and find out who did this. And make them pay." He groaned, and brought his hand to his chest again. "As soon as we're able."

They continued making their way to the medical lab. The few people they passed didn't seem to know what was going on. A few of them, seeing Nate splattered with blood, asked if he was alright. They had to make up some excuse and hurry on their way. _Let Lincoln explain all this. It was his goddamn idea._

"In the army… did you know anyone who survived getting shot in the head?" Nora asked suddenly.

"Hm. Not personally, but I did hear of it one or two times. They told us even if someone was shot in the head, to call a medic anyway. If you get them treated quickly, if there's a surgeon with the right equipment… and if you get lucky, it's possible.

"Well, we have… three of those things so far."

"They also told us to expect the worst."

* * *

 **JULY 6, 2087. 9:24 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** They found the rest of the survey team gathered outside the EML. Pacing, sitting in chairs, head buried in hands. "Is she in there?" Nate asked.

"Yeah, he's- Don brought her in, hasn't come back out yet." David said.

"They told us to wait outside." Isaac added.

"Did anyone see you, on the way over?" Nate demanded.

"No… why?"

"Because we need to contain this, to the smallest possible group, until the Overseer makes an official announcement."

"Oh, Christ." Francine groaned. "What are we even going to tell them? There's some group of crazy people out there who want to kill us?"

"There won't be for long." Nate said. "Because we're going to go back out there, find them, and fucking kill them all. _That's_ what we tell them."

"Isn't that a little premature? Who knows how many of them are out there." David asked.

"I say we hit back quick, when they're not expecting it. It's not like they're just going to leave us alone." Isaac interjected.

"Oh, that's a great idea. Just rush into a fight with a group that we know nothing about. Are you thinking clearly, Isaac?" David countered.

"I'm thinking about my _brother_ , David, and what's going to happen to him when a bunch of assholes with guns break in here to steal everything we have."

"Shit." Nate suddenly said. Everyone looked at him. "Has anyone told Zeke and Diane what happened?" No one answered, simply looking away despondently. He sighed. "God damnit. I'll go bring them down here." He walked off.

"Nate." Nora stopped him. He turned around. "Wash the blood off first."

"Right." He said quietly.

Nora sat down in a chair next to Francine, and laid her head in her hands. She couldn't imagine the pain the Cofrans were about to go through. _I'm sorry Nora, but I'm afraid Shaun's been shot._ Even thinking about it made her stomach drop.

The EML door opened, and Don staggered out. Everyone immediately stood, staring at him expectantly. It took him a moment to say anything. "Uh… she's in surgery." He finally said. He looked dazed, and his jumpsuit was red and slick with blood.

"Is she gonna live? What did Javi say?" Isaac asked.

Don let out a ragged sigh. "I don't fucking know…" He walked over and fell into a chair. "He starts talking about how he's never operated on a gunshot to the head, he hasn't even fucking done surgery in years…" He trailed off. "Before he kicked me out, he said to go find her parents."

"Nate already went." Nora said.

With nothing to do but wait, they fell back into pacing, or just sitting in silence. After a few more minutes, Diane came running down the hall, tears streaming down her cheeks. Zeke followed, with a look of pure anguish on his face. Nate was far behind them, looking like he had just seen his own ghost.

Diane barrelled past them and went straight into the EML. Shouting quickly erupted. Nora couldn't make out what was being said, only Diane's frantic shouting. _If it were you… how would you react? What would you do?_

The door opened again, Diane was backing out of the doorway, with Jessica trying to calm her and get her back into the hallway. "I want to know!" Diane shrilled. "Is she going to die?!"

"It's still early! Please, Diane, let us work." Jessica said, her hands raised, trying to stop Diane from rushing back in.

Zeke rushed over to his wife. "Honey! We need to stay out of their way for now." He said. Diane stumbled back into the hallway, crying uncontrollably. Zeke led her into a chair and they both sat down.

" _This is all our fault._ " Diane sobbed.

* * *

 **JULY 6, 2087. 11:03 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** Nora had never felt this helpless before. Their collective dread grew with each passing minute, consuming them. Simultaneously, Nora could feel tensions rising within the Vault. Whispered conversations, rumors flying. People were catching on to what had happened. Anxiety was growing. _Lincoln's gonna have a mob on his hands soon if he doesn't say something to them._

As if on cue, the intercom crackled to life. Lincoln's voice came through. " _Attention, please. This is the Overseer. I'm calling an emergency meeting in the atrium, and I'd advise everyone to attend. If you can't, you can listen to the meeting through the Vault's PA system, on your PIP-Boy."_

"Does anyone want to listen to that?" Nate asked. "He's not gonna say anything we don't already know." No one answered. "Alright."

A sudden realization hit Nora, and she stood up from the chair. "Shaun's still at home. I need to go get him."

"Are you gonna tell him what happened?" Nate asked.

"He's going to find out anyway."

Before leaving for the surface, Nora had asked Sylvia Dunn to stay at their house for a while to watch Shaun. Upon returning home, she found no sign of them. She found a note after searching the kitchen. " _Nora, I'm taking Shaun to the meeting in the atrium. If you see this note, come find us. -Sylvia"_

"Damn it," Nora muttered. She wanted to break it to Shaun personally. He and Cindy were practically cousins, despite the age gap. She ran out the door and down the hallway, weaving past the clusters of people making their way toward the atrium. "Sylvia! Shaun!" She shouted, trying to spot them in the crowd. The entrance to the atrium was backed up with people trying to squeeze inside.

"Nora?" Someone called across the hall. Nora turned to see Sylvia poking her head above the mass of people. "Is that you?"

"Sylvia!" They both began pushing through the crowd toward each other. Nora spotted Shaun behind her, clutching her hand. "There you are." Nora said as they met each other halfway.

"Nora, is everything alright? Have you gone to the surface yet?"

"Yeah, everything's fine. Listen, I'll take Shaun off your hands now. You can head to the meeting."

Sylvia looked bewildered, but handed Shaun over to Nora. "Nora, what is going on?"

"The Overseer will explain everything." Nora said, already pulling Shaun back down the hallway. "Thanks so much for watching Shaun!" She called back.

Soon they had left the throng behind them, power walking down the empty, quiet hallways. Nora hated being the bearer of bad news, especially to children. She tried to come up with something to say, but it kept getting caught in her throat. Her heart began beating faster as they got closer to the EML.

Shaun suddenly spoke up. "Mom… what's happening? I thought you were going outside with Dad."

"We did. We went outside."

"Is he okay?"

"He's fine, honey."

They passed by an open door. The Ward family was inside, listening to the PA system. Lincoln's voice rose up, " _-a heinous and cowardly attack that has left one of our own fighting for their life…"_ Shaun looked inside as they passed, listening.

"Someone got hurt, didn't they?"

Nora tried to think of what to tell him. How she would want it to be broken to her. She decided it would be best to do it like ripping off a band-aid. She stopped, and knelt down in front of him. "Shaun… it was Cindy." She said solemnly. "She was shot… and we don't know if she'll survive."

Shaun frowned, and looked like he was going to cry. But he didn't. "Where is she?" He asked, his voice quavering.

"She's in the infirmary."

"Are her parents with her?"

Nora nodded. "They're there."

"Are we going to see her?"

"She's still in surgery. But we're going to wait outside."

Shaun sniffled. "Okay."

The walk back to the EML was spent in dour silence.

* * *

 **JULY 6, 2087. 9:20 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** She dreamed they left the Vault behind and found somewhere green. Somewhere alive, like when the world was new. The were able to run barefoot through verdant grasslands, to swim in crystalline water, and lie beneath the open sky. Unburdened, free. Nora dreamed she grew old there with her family and friends, living a peaceful, fulfilling life.

Then her eyes snapped open. The vent above her rattled and whined. A gray relic. Like the rest of her surroundings.

She was lying across two chairs, with a blanket draped over her. Resting uncomfortably against one of the armrests. She hauled herself to a sitting position and looked around. Nate was to her left, asleep in a chair, his head resting on his fist. Shaun next to him, reading a comic book. Drake Tungsten, Chrono Cowboy. To Nora's right were Diane and Zeke, leaning on each other in a tranquil looking sleep.

All day they had waited, without a further word from the doctors. Nora knew Nate wouldn't leave until he was sure of Cindy's fate, one way or the other… so she wouldn't leave either.

Nora was actually optimistic. She reasoned that if Cindy was beyond saving, Javier wouldn't have spent 12 hours operating on her. The waiting and uncertainty was still stomach churning, but there was hope, she felt.

She laid her head back down on the armrest, praying for the best.

* * *

 **JULY 6, 2087. 10:43 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** Nora awoke again, pulled from a fleeting, dreamless sleep by the door to the EML opening. Javier and Jessica stepped out, looking exhausted. Diane and Zeke both stood up, holding each other, too afraid to even ask the question.

Javier cleared his throat. "I've managed to stabilize her. Stop the damage."

"Wh- what does that mean…?" Zeke croaked.

"It means… she's out of the woods, for now. She was shot in the side of the head, by a low caliber bullet, from long range. These factors combined means things could have been a lot worse."

They all sighed with relief. "Can we see her?" Diane asked.

"Well, you can, but she's not conscious. The bullet still did significant damage to her occipital and temporal lobes. She's in a coma. When she wakes, she may have trouble remembering things or people."

"But… you're sure she'll live?"

"As long as we keep her on a feeding tube… yes, she'll live."

It was good news, the best that could be realistically expected. The Cofrans were weeping with joy, Shaun was beaming. Nate had a mixture of relief and shame in his face. Nora hugged him. "She won't blame you, Nate." She whispered.

From then onward, it was only a matter of when Cindy would wake up. More waiting, yes, but a step up from waiting to know if she would die or not.

* * *

 **JULY 23, 2087. 6:21 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** A knock at Nate and Nora's door came early in the morning, with good news. Cindy had finally woken up.

They scrambled into their jumpsuits as quickly as they could and followed Jessica down to the EML. "I got a page on my PIP-Boy at about 4 A.M., waking me up. The nurse call button in the EML had been hit. I rush down there, and there she is, sitting up in the bed. First thing she did was ask for a soda." Jessica explained.

"What's her condition like?" Nate asked.

"As expected, she has gaps in her memory. She doesn't seem to remember going outside." She stopped outside the EML door. "If she doesn't remember you, just try to gently remind her. We don't want to put her through too much shock or stress."

They stepped through the doorway into the EML. Cindy was in the recovery room, lying in bed, with a bandage wrapped around her head. Her parents were at her side, sitting next to the bed. She smiled at Nate and Nora when they entered.

"Cindy… do you- remember us?" Nate asked tentatively.

Cindy chuckled. "How could I forget the dynamic duo?" She looked over at her parents. "Can I talk to them alone for a minute?"

Diane and Zeke looked like they hadn't slept at all. They were probably brought down here even earlier than Nate and Nora. They nodded to each other as they left.

"So," Nate said, pulling up a chair next to Cindy. "Doctor says you don't remember much. About going outside."

Cindy shifted uncomfortably in the bed. "Actually, that was kind of a lie." She sat up a little higher. "I remember a lot about it… that's why I called you down here. My parents didn't seem to know what happened to me, exactly." She tried to look Nate in the eye. "I thought you could tell me more."

Nate sighed, and hung his head. "The truth is, Cindy, we're not really sure what happened either. We were ambushed, and we didn't catch any sight of who it was before they ran off. We rushed you back into the Vault as quickly as possible." He looked back up at her. "We've gone back outside and looked for them three times, and haven't found anything." He shook his head. "I'm so sorry, Cindy. You got hurt on my watch."

"What do you mean?" Cindy asked.

"When we went up there, it was my job, as Security Chief, to keep everyone safe. And I didn't."

"Have you been blaming yourself for what happened to me?" Nate looked up at her, confused. "Nate… I told you before, I'm not a kid anymore. I wanted to come with you. _I_ did. Sometimes bad things happen…" She took his hand. "But this isn't on you, Nate. It's no one's fault."

Nate's eyes were wet. "I'll find who did this, Cindy. We'll find them. I promise."

* * *

 **JULY 29, 2087. 6:14 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** It had been more than three weeks since the incident. Four separate expeditions, all yielding nothing. Nora had only gone on one of them, spending the better part of a day combing the woods to the Northwest of the Vault, and finding no sign of their attackers. In fact, they had found no sign of anything at all. The world outside was devoid of even animals. No deer roaming the forest, no birds circling in the grey sky. Only hill after valley after hill of deserted, silent ashlands. _Maybe they really were ghosts_ , Nora found herself musing on the long hike back to the Vault. _Maybe they vanished into smoke right after shooting Cindy and Nate._

On the first expedition, Nate took the time to fetch Codsworth from Sanctuary Hills, and bring him down into the Vault. After a quick radiation scan, Nora was allowed to acquaint him with the Vault. Showing him the facilities, explaining to him what had been going on down there the whole time. He was eager to get to work cleaning their house, but Nora wanted to fix him up first. With a few spare parts, and Arthur Able's help, they managed to replace Codsworth's eye and stabilizer jet. They also gave him a good rust scraping and polishing. In the end, he almost looked brand new.

She also reintroduced him to Shaun. Shaun obviously didn't remember him, but he had never seen a Mr. Handy in person before, and was excited about the prospect of having a butler. Codsworth, on the other hand, was ecstatic, gushing about how much Shaun had grown, embarrassing him with baby stories. _It's odd, but… I actually consider that robot a part of my family._

As the expeditions continued, life in the Vault returned to almost normality. Many people were disheartened by what happened on the initial scouting mission, but many and more still wanted to leave the Vault. They were also eager to defend themselves. People turned out in droves to Nate's self-defense lessons. He taught them survival techniques he learned in the army, how to handle and maintain the guns they had in the Vault, and how to shoot them properly. Nora attended more than a few of the lessons. Within a few weeks, she was very confident with a gun.

David, on the other hand, went about educating them on how to handle the environment outside. They drew up plans for farming, selecting crops that could survive in the cold, and ones that were resistant to ultraviolet radiation. In the end, they decided on cabbage and radishes. They had a limited stock of seeds and pesticides within the Vault, but they had planned to make the most efficient use of them.

David was also interested in setting up housing on the surface. There were too many of them to all fit in the old houses in Sanctuary Hills, and they only had enough supplies to fashion a few tents. Nate, Nora and Shaun would be sharing their old house with the Cofrans, and the Ables. It would be tight quarters.

Nora was waiting in the elevator chamber when the fourth expedition returned. She was leaning over the railing as the gate lifted. Nate stood there with his helmet and rifle in hand, along with Christine, Don and Isaac. They all looked exhausted.

"Anything out there?" Nora asked, not expecting much.

"Same as all the other times." Nate sighed. "I'm starting to think I just imagined getting shot in the chest." They trudged up the stairs, lugging their equipment with them. Nate had stopped wearing his glasses a while ago, and Nora could clearly see how dark his eyes were. He had been working himself to the bone lately.

Nora followed them into the armory as they deposited their gear back into the proper places. "I, uh… subbed in for you at today's target practice. I think I did a pretty good job of directing them." She said.

Nate leaned over, and kissed her on the forehead. "Good. No reason to skip a day just because I'm not here." He placed his rifle on the rack. "You want to come with me to report to the Overseer?" He asked.

"Sure."

"Alright." He turned to the others. "You guys can head home if you want."

"Thanks, Nate." Christine replied.

On the walk down to Lincoln's office, Nora posed a question. "Has it been getting any warmer up there?"

"We were wondering that too." Nate told her. "I had my PIP-Boy record the temperature on each trip to the surface. On our very first one, average morning temperature read as 21 degrees fahrenheit. The one we just came back from, temperature at the same time was 25 degrees. Not exactly a pattern, but better than nothing."

"Hmm. Probably won't get much warmer before winter."

"No. Next spring's looking good though, according to the Vault computer."

Lincoln was waiting for them in his office, looking over a clipboard, wearing his reading glasses. He set the clipboard down as they walked in. "Ah. I was expecting you back earlier, Nate." He nodded hello at Nora.

"We took a detour. I wanted to stay out just a bit longer."

"Still no sign of them, I assume?"

Nate sighed. "No. We thought we found some tracks, but it turned out to be nothing."

Lincoln pulled off his glasses. "Hm. That's four times now you've gone over the area surrounding the Vault. I think it's time to sound the all clear, and bring everyone up to the surface."

Nate sat up in his chair. " _What?_ No, you can't! It's not safe yet! Those people are still out there."

"It's been three weeks, Nate, and you haven't found a goddamn trace of them. Now, I'm not saying we let our guard down, not by any means… but we can't just cower down here."

"We're not cowering, we're being cautious." Nate grimaced.

"Has it occurred to you that the people who attacked you simply could have been roaming bandits? They could be a hundred miles away from here by now." Lincoln lectured. "Nora, tell your husband to see reason."

"Well… I don't believe that whoever attacked us is just gone, but I do agree that we should leave the Vault. We've been practicing with guns every days for weeks. We can defend ourselves. And I think that any group would think twice before attacking an armed camp of 74 people." Nora reasoned out.

Nate grunted. "By now, I know when I'm outnumbered. If this is happening, it's happening. But we're going to take the proper precautions. Watchmen, armed patrols, perimeter fortifications in all directions."

"Of course." Lincoln said. "That all goes without saying. If anyone wants to attack us again, we won't make it easy for them."

* * *

 **AUGUST 3, 2087. 12:10 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** Five days later, Cindy was finally allowed to leave the infirmary. Nate, Nora, Shaun, Zeke and Diane were all there to celebrate. Lincoln also appeared briefly, to express his gratitude for her "sacrifice for the Vault". She was still undergoing physical therapy, and needed a crutch to walk, but overall her recovery was astounding. According to Jessica, her cognitive faculties had returned by about 90 percent, and would continue to improve over time.

"Does it hurt?" Shaun asked her, as she hobbled back home with them.

"Shaun!" Nora scolded. "Don't be rude."

"No, it's alright." Cindy said. "It doesn't really hurt anymore. Just feels numb sometimes. I get lightheaded."

"That's good. That it doesn't hurt…" Shaun said quietly. "I was really worried about you."

Cindy laughed. "That's sweet, Shaun."

They arrived at the Cofran's house. A "Welcome Home!" banner was hung in the living room, and a few drinks were laid out. Cindy collapsed on the couch with a great sigh, casting her crutch aside. "Whew. Gotta get used to that." She panted.

They all sat down on the couches, laid opposite each other with a coffee table between them. "Thanks for coming over, you two." Diane said.

"We wouldn't miss it." Nate said. Nora was sure Nate still felt some guilt over Cindy getting shot. It was just his nature.

They spent a little while chatting about nothing of importance, before Cindy addressed the elephant in the room. "So, I hear we're finally giving it another go, back out on the surface."

After an awkward pause, Nate cleared his throat. "Ahem. Yeah. Against my advice, the Overseer gave the all clear. We've already began moving equipment and supplies up there."

"I'm finally gonna get to see my old house!" Shaun said. Cindy gave a small laugh.

"Of course, we are gonna make sure it's safe." Nate continued. "We've been training with guns, we're gonna have patrols, the works."

"And you never found the people who… shot me?" Cindy asked.

Nate sighed. "No. We searched everywhere, but it's like they were never even there."

"Don't worry, Cindy." Nora tried to reassure her. "They might not come back here. We might never even see them again."

Cindy got an odd look on her face. Almost manic. "I hope they come back. I hope we get the chance to smash their fucking faces in." She covered her mouth, and her cheeks turned red. "Oh. Sorry, Shaun."

Nate seemed almost embarrassed. "That's… that's okay, Cindy."

Cindy laughed nervously. "Look, I'm- I'm gonna be okay, guys. You don't need to worry about me." Nora could tell she was sweating. _God. This poor girl is a wreck._

* * *

 **AUGUST 3, 2087. 11:07 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** That night, Nate and Nora were in their room, getting ready to go to sleep. Nate pulled his shirt off and sat down next to Nora. "Did you notice how Cindy was acting this afternoon?" She asked. "Kind of… nervous."

"Yeah… yeah, I did." Nate replied. "And I think I know why." He sighed. "She's got fucking PTSD."

"PTSD?" Nora had heard of it before, mostly in the context of war and soldiers.

"Saw it all the time in Alaska. Sometimes the trauma just gets to you. She was shot in the head. That's more than most soldiers have to suffer through. She's probably going to be having nightmares about it." He looked somber. "I'll talk to her. Take her to Steve Presper, have her do a few therapy sessions with him." He closed his eyes, and pinched the bridge of his nose. "What a disaster."

Nora put her hand on his shoulder. "Hey. It's gonna be alright." She said. "We just have to take things one day at a time."

He took a deep breath. "I know. I guess I just thought by this point, we'd be done having to worry about the future. But I guess that's never going to stop. We just have to keep moving forward, no matter what."

* * *

 **AUGUST 6, 2087. 9:22 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** Nora was on the elevator, at the bottom, preparing for her fourth trip to the surface. They had spent the past week ferrying supplies up to the surface, and stashing them in "Sanctuary". Thanks to Lincoln, that name caught on, and the "Hills" part of it was dropped. Nora was unsure how to feel about that, but she supposed it made no real difference. _Faster to say… I guess._

They had also made minor progress on cleaning things up outside. The corpses were taken away and burned, and a proper bridge was set up across the creek. All the various supplies scattered around the construction site had also been rounded up, catalogued and stashed.

Tonight, Nora had been assigned to help Harry Dunn bring a set of computer banks up to the surface. They used a buddy system, ensuring no one left the Vault alone. Nora was rather nervous, as it was her first trip to the surface at night. It seemed kind of silly to be afraid of going outside at night, but she knew better than most people the dangers of the surface. Her Colt 6520 pistol was secure in its holster, should anything happen.

"Alright! Send it up!" Harry shouted back into the entrance room. The computer banks were fastened to a dolly, which he was holding secure. "This is my first time going to the surface. I'm shitting myself." He said as the elevator ascended.

"Don't be nervous. It's not as bad as it was before." Nora told him. "Gonna be freezing, though. You probably should have brought a jacket."

"Now you tell me." He grumbled. "Let's just hurry up and wheel this thing down the hill."

"Do you remember what the area outside the Vault looked like?" Nora asked.

"Vaguely. I remember rushing up there, with my parents and sisters. All the soldiers, and sirens. Hm. I'll bet it's basically unrecognizable now."

"Yeah…"

They reached the top. The metallic clash of the elevator echoed in the darkness. The red glow of the computer banks was the only light for miles.

"Can't see a thing." Nora said. "Harry, turn on your- _holy shit!_ " She stumbled back, and fell on her backside. The stars loomed overhead, so vast and cavernous it threw her off balance.

"Are you alright?" Harry rushed over to her.

"Yeah, it's just… disorienting." Millions of twinkling stars filled the sky, so much more than she had ever seen. The colossal cloud of the Milky Way stretched across them. Nora hadn't seen the night sky in ten years, and she had _never_ seen it like this.

"What, the sky?" Harry asked.

"Every other time I've come out here, it's been cloudy." There were a few small clouds above, but they were far overtaken by the stars. "Oh my god." She had to keep her eyes on the ground. "I feel like I'm going to fall into it."

"That's what it looks like without any light pollution… it's beautiful." He looked down at her. "Have you ever had vertigo?"

"I used to get it all the time as a teenager." She took a deep breath. "Why?"

"That's probably why you lost your balance. Here." He extended his hand to her. "You'll get used to it." She clasped it, and he hoisted her onto her feet.

Nora cleared her throat. "Sorry about that. As I was going to say, turn on your PIP-Boy flashlight."

"Right." Harry turned his on, and Nora followed suit.

They wheeled the computer banks down into the currently empty neighborhood. Harry was shivering by the time they made it down. They decided to stow the banks in the house that used to belong to Donna and Lacey Richardson. _I wonder what happened to them,_ Nora thought. _They're probably dead. Like everyone else we used to know._

"This is the house I was assigned to." Harry said between teeth chattering. "It's a dump! There's holes in the walls."

Nora sighed. "My house has holes in it too. We'll get them repaired when we all move out here."

"And hopefully bring some heaters, too." He shivered again. "Let's get back to the Vault."

On the walk back, Nora took a second to look back at the neighborhood, so dark and desolate. _Today is Wednesday… and we'll be officially moving out here on Friday._ On Friday they would leave the nest. On Friday they would begin building their lives again.

* * *

 **OCTOBER 23, 2087. 1:15 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** That morning, a wet, gray snow had fallen over Sanctuary, casting it as a dreary waste. It was now in the process of melting, dripping off the rooftops and running down the street. Nora was in the old carport of her house, sitting on the rusted out remains of their station wagon. Coffee mug in hand, blanket around her shoulders. The coffee mug didn't hold coffee, only steaming, boiled water. They had run out of coffee grounds within a month of coming back outside. Lately, every morning was an early one, and every day was long and arduous.

Despite that, they had made significant progress in the past two and a half months. The houses were cleaned, and those assigned to live in them brought all their belongings inside. The collapsed houses were cannibalized and the spare plates were welded over the holes in the walls and roofs. Various plastic tarps or sheets were taped over the broken windows. A patchwork and sloppy fix, but the houses were nearly unlivable while the cold wind could get inside. The snow and leaves were shoveled away, and the loose trash was sorted through and disposed of. Codsworth was assigned to shear away all the dead plants in the neighborhood, leaving room for crops.

Nate and Nora had planted cabbages in the plot of dirt next to the carport. They were small and budding, slowly growing larger. They had struggled greatly in the cold climate, but proved hardy enough to weather it. Nora hoped Sanctuary as a whole would fare as well. She looked over at the cabbages, damp and glistening from the snow.

The days that passed continued to prove gray. Rarely, the clouds would part, giving them a brief glimpse of the livid sky. But mostly it remained bleak and overcast. Some days it would snow. Some days it would rain. Other times, clouds from the Southeast would roll in, bringing radiation with the rain or snow. Nora awoke one morning to find snow, glowing green, coating the ground outside. A few of them had to don biohazard suits to shovel it far away.

Their greatest worry was the cold. Blowing in on the wind, falling with the snow. Upon leaving the Vault, they finally shed their jumpsuits and replaced them with winter clothing. The problem was that they had very little winter clothing stored away, mostly limited to pajamas or casual clothing. People resorted to wearing plastic tarps as cloaks, layering long johns over their jumpsuits, and fashioning fingerless gloves out of old socks. By now, they resembled a camp of filthy derelicts, shuffling through the old snow and mud, huddling to keep warm.

 _This snowmelt isn't going to help the speech._ Nora wondered if it would be postponed until later in the afternoon. But even now the fire pits were being rekindled with dry wood. There were dozens of them, spread evenly in the patches of grass between the houses and the street. They made the cold more bearable for people who didn't have proper layered clothes. Nora was fortunate, she realized, to be so bundled up. She wore a plain blue parka that went down to her thighs, threadbare wool gloves, a ratty gray beanie and black pants. She kept her old Vault boots, as they were very sturdy and insulated.

All of the 26 pistols and rifles that were stocked in the Vault were being put to use. Nate had organized a volunteer militia, tasked with keeping Sanctuary safe. They had guard posts at the bridge at the creek, the larger bridge to the south, and watch posts on the eastern and western banks of the island. Patrols went out every day, scouting the outlying areas, watching for any sign of people or animals. So far, no reports of anything.

Nate had also made sure to reserve a pistol for Nora. She was the only person not in the militia to have one. She felt slightly guilty about it, but she knew the pistol was in good hands. It was currently holstered underneath her parka.

"You taking in the scenery?" Nate called behind her. She turned around to see him leaning out the kitchen doorway.

She smiled wryly at him. "Yeah. Just admiring the view." she quipped.

"Come inside. We're gonna have lunch."

Nora obliged, hopping off the car hood, bringing a few flakes of rust with her. She followed Nate back inside. They had taped the flap of a tent to the doorway to replace the door. It was fumbling and tedious to open, but it sealed the wind out.

Inside the house was stuffy and cramped, but warm. There were nine of them living inside, including Shaun and Codsworth. The Winters slept in their old room, the Ables took Shaun's baby room, and the Confrans laid mattresses down in the living room. Zeke and Cindy were currently in the kitchen, cooking radishes in a skillet over a hot plate. Connie, Diane and Shaun were on the couch, gathered around the portable heater. Arthur was in bed, sick with a cold for the past few days.

"Food's almost ready!" Cindy called back as they entered. Nora took a seat in the armchair by the window. Wind whistled in through a tiny hole in the tarp.

"What have you prepared for us today, chef?" Connie teased.

"It's Thursday, so the usual. Roasted radishes with pepper and ketchup." Cindy answered.

"I dread the day when we run out of ketchup." Nate murmured.

"Nothing special for the tenth anniversary?" Nora asked, only half kidding. "I know we have _some_ packaged food left."

"I was thinking we should try to make that last." Zeke said. "We can just keep growing radishes, but who knows when we'll see another box of snack cakes."

Their old dinner table was crowded with seven people sitting at it. Nora was shoulder to shoulder with Nate and Shaun. "Wait." Cindy said, before they started eating. "I want to say grace." Everyone paused. That wasn't something they usually did. Nonetheless, they joined hands.

"Dear God," Cindy started. "Thank you for all this. Thank you for burning the world to a worthless cinder. Thank you for letting me get shot in the head." _Oh, god…_ "And most of all, thank you for these radishes." Cindy paused. Nora almost went for her fork, until Cindy finished. "And thank you that we're still alive." She said quietly.

They ate in awkward silence. Nora knew the tenth anniversary of the war would dredge up unpleasant memories. Lincoln's speech was probably devised just to distract people from it. Give them something to do. They had spent the last week constructing the miniature stage Lincoln would give the speech from. After it was done, their attention would probably be turned to more material things, like their growing supply shortage.

* * *

 **OCTOBER 23, 2087. 2:28 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 74** It was almost time. Everyone who wasn't sick in bed was out in the street, waiting for the speech to start. They massed around the rickety wooden platform situated on the foundation of one of the houses they dismantled. Shivering, coughing, sporadically complaining. The ground around the stage was mostly dry, thanks to the fire pits. The dirt was still soft and damp. Nora's boots sank into it slightly.

Next to her, Nate shuddered, his breath visible in the air. "I'm just glad we didn't do this at night." He said. Shaun was in front of him, wrapped in his bomber jacket.

"Yeah, that would have been a fucking disaster." Nora replied. "Oop. Sorry, Shaun. We need to get a swear jar."

"But what would we put in it?" Nate asked rhetorically.

Finally, Lincoln emerged from his tent, clutching a sheet of paper. There was some scattered applause as he ascended the platform. "Good afternoon, my fellow citizens." He boomed. Even without a microphone, Lincoln's voice carried well. "Now, you may be asking yourselves, 'citizens of what?'. No, not the Vault. America." The crowd was silent. "Ten years ago today, the United States of America suffered a terrible blow, one that we are admittedly still feeling the effects of. But I want to assure you… that it's not over." His voice echoed into the trees across the river. "America is not dead. _We_ are not dead. And we will continue to farm, and build, and survive, for as long as it takes for us to reunite with our people." Behind him, a few sun shafts gleamed out through a thinner stretch of clouds. It was an impressive picture. Hopeful. "On that day, our old wounds may begin to heal. We have spent day and night these past months, scouring the airwaves on our radio. So far we've found nothing. But don't lose hope. I know, in my heart, that everything we've gone through has been _for_ something. There will be a light at the end of the tunnel. We've been given a second chance, and I leave it to each and every one of you to make the most of it. Thank you." Applause broke out as he stepped down from the stage. He moved through the crowd, shaking hands. Finally the clouds parted and the sun broke through. It shone down on them, providing a hesitant warmth.

Afterward, a sense of optimism permeated Sanctuary. A sense that things were getting on track. Despite everything that had happened, and everything that could yet happen, Nora found herself dreaming about the future. One she thought they had a chance of seeing. A future where they could finally reclaim some of what they had lost, and build a happy life. Their struggles were nowhere near over, but maybe they wouldn't be for naught.

Maybe.


	5. Dark Age

_Author's Note: I apologize for the ten month (!) wait for this chapter. It was incredibly difficult to finish. For anyone still following this story, rest assured I have not abandoned this project, and I probably never will. I'm just an incredibly slow writer. I think future chapters will come quicker (I'm already halfway done with the next chapter), but I don't want to promise anything._

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 10, 2087. 6:40 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** Winter crashed down upon them like a tidal wave. What had once been chills brought in on the wind and rain were now frigid snowstorms, entombing Sanctuary in snow almost daily. Outside foot traffic all but vanished as people shut themselves in their houses and tents. Nate took it upon himself to make rounds every morning, going from house to house making sure no one had frozen to death in the night. At the start of his days he would step out into the frozen dawn wrapped in thick, grimy blankets and wade through the gray ploughs until his feet were numb from cold. Surveying the neighborhood as he went, Nate would marvel at the icebound desolation Sanctuary Hills had become. Like a scene from some morbid snowglobe. In the old days, November in Massachusetts would be chilly… but this was Siberian. The average temperature would fluctuate between five and negative five degrees Fahrenheit in the morning. Nate's beard and eyebrows would frost over in minutes. _And it's not even December yet._

His first order of business was to make sure the gardens hadn't collapsed. The makeshift "greenhouses" they had built around them were prone to collecting snow and sagging. After that, he would move on to the fire pits, shoveling uniformly gray snow and cinders out of the basins before reigniting them. The feeble fires would whip about violently in the wind, threatening to vanish at any moment. They did little to stave off the cold, but on a calm day they would create a sort of warm aura around the camp. This was not one of those days.

Little piles of snow blocked his way down the sidewalk. Nate shoveled them away with his leg as he lumbered past. Scraping uncomfortably against the old concrete. A tent flap was open between the houses, and a voice flew out on the wind. "Nate." He pivoted to see Lincoln, hunched over in the threshold of the tent, shivering. "That is you, right?" He added, squinting. "I can barely tell through those rags you're wrapped in."

"You know anyone else who spends their mornings out here in the cold?" Nate replied. Lincoln shrugged in response. "How you holding up, Lincoln?"

"Ah, just trying to get this damn radio to… start doing its job." He motioned inside. Nate stepped through, aware that Lincoln didn't really answer his question. The inside of the tent was littered with cables, wire bundles, and cords, snaking across the floor and walls. They all sprouted out from a cluster of receivers, amplifiers, and microphones which took up the entire left side of the tent.

"You can't get a signal, or the radio's not working?" Nate asked, pulling down the cloth from his mouth.

"Oh, it's working alright. But I've spent the last two months just listening to static." Lincoln leaned down and pulled a mug off of a hotplate, and offered it to Nate. Steaming water. "Want some?"

"I'm good." Nate replied. According to Elizabeth, drinking hot water didn't actually do much to make them warmer. Lincoln took a sip for himself, then set it back down on the hot plate.

"I don't get it…" Lincoln muttered, shaking his head at the radios. "How could there be _no one_ on the radio waves?"

"Hm." Nate scratched his beard. _Assuming that's not a rhetorical question, what am I supposed to say?_ He knew next to nothing about radios. "Have you asked Michael about this?"

"Yeah. He's been helping me with this since September."

"Or what about, uh, Chris Ward? I know he works on radios. Or he used to."

Lincoln grunted. "Ah, Michael's been talking to him. They seem to share the opinion that all the smoke, and dust and cloud layers in the atmosphere are interfering with long range radio signals."

"And you don't believe that?"

"Do you really think the government is going to be stopped by some clouds?" Lincoln glared at him, kind of wide eyed and manic. "The radiation is gone. It took ten years, but the surface is livable again. So where is everyone?"

Nate sighed. "How long has it been since you slept, Lincoln?"

Lincoln blinked. "I… what?"

"I'm just saying, you seem kind of… rough around the edges. Like you haven't spent much time away from this radio recently."

"I'm… fine, Nate. I'm doing my job, my part, like everyone else in Sanctuary." He seemed taken aback by the accusation.

"Your job is to be the Overseer. We can't have you running on empty. Why don't you try and get some sleep, Lincoln? If we find someone, we find someone. Until then, there's no need to make your hair fall out over it."

Lincoln gave a booming laugh. "I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm half bald already!" He sniffled. "Ah, but I suppose you're right. These hopeless bastards are gonna need me at my best." He grinned at Nate.

Nate chuckled. "That's the spirit." He pulled the cloth back over his mouth. "See you around."

And with that, he was back out in the cold. Nate found himself thinking about what Lincoln said, as he toiled back through the snow. Personally, he wasn't sure if the government was really gone. He knew some people thought so, but they only voiced that opinion in private. A lot of people genuinely believed America would persist in some form. But Nate couldn't help but remember something his old C.O. told him, a lifetime ago. His unit was stationed in the Chugach Mountains, waiting to defend against a Chinese offensive. Snowed in, unable to sleep, staying awake late into the night talking about the war. Nate's squadmate, O'Neil, was convinced that ending the war was as simple dropping a few atomic bombs on Beijing.

"Haven't you ever heard of MAD, numbnuts?" Sergeant Gardner had said. "We launch our nukes, then China launches theirs right back. And we all get blown to smithereens. Mutually assured destruction. You can't win a nuclear war."

 _You can't win a nuclear war._ Had America lost? Or had the government survived, somewhere? Nate desperately wanted to believe so, for Shaun's sake.

The fate of the government aside, Nate was also worried about Lincoln. His fixation on those radios was bordering on obsession. For anyone else, Nate could dismiss it as a harmless coping mechanism. But Lincoln was supposed to be their leader. If he began behaving erratically, it could seriously damage the already fraying morale of the camp.

By then the sun was almost fully up, casting its grayness across the neighborhood. He stood for a while watching the ashen light splinter through the rusted metal of the Rosa house. The morning fog giving it depth and geometry. Almost godly. Almost beautiful.

Eventually his circuit around the neighborhood looped him back around. The Reynolds' house, his old neighbors, was his last stop. And there, came news he had been dreading since they first returned to the surface.

Martha Seong answered the door crying. He knew right away. Someone had died. Behind her, in the living room, a corpse laid on a mattress. Wrapped in blankets. A week ago, Martha's mother Eun-Ji became bedridden with pneumonia. The intense cold was too much, even inside by the fire, and she succumbed to it in the night. Martha tearfully asked Nate to take away the body.

Eun-Ji Seong was 72 years old, the oldest person from the Vault. And she was the first to die. The grim truth was that conditions on the surface were simply too harsh for the very young or very old. _Shaun is the youngest person from the Vault. God damn it. I knew we shouldn't have come up here._

Nate ended up carrying the elderly woman's wrapped up body to a storage shed they constructed on the eastern side of the island. The ground outside was frozen solid, far too cold to dig a grave. So, with Martha's permission, Nate decided on a funeral pyre, to be held that evening after a short service.

As Nate exited the shed, he stopped outside the door and buried his face in his hands. He stood there frozen like that for the better part of a minute, waiting for the tingling to go away. Then he dropped his hands and looked up at the sky. The cataracted sun loomed overhead, taunting him with the truth at last. There was no beauty here. The sun was blinding and the air was gritty and suffocating. _Cindy getting shot was one thing, but this changes things. This we can't go back from._ Their first death in ten years.

He let out a trembling breath, then crouched in the snow and closed his eyes. He tried to envision the desert. The cacti, the sun baked sand, a bead of sweat running down from his hair. But something was wrong. The sky there was gray and cloudy, like the real one. _God, I can't even remember what a fucking blue sky looks like._ He opened his eyes and nervously swept his hair back.

 _Snap._

Nate's heart nearly jumped out of his chest. The sound came from the east, in the woods. He scrambled around to the other side of the shed, away from it. For a split second, he thought it was a gunshot, that the assailants from the northern woods had come back to ambush them. But it was far too quiet. No, it sounded more like a tree branch breaking. He poked his head out for a look at the woods. No movement. He pulled his pistol out of its holster, and slowly crept to where the sound came from.

Among the dead twigs and knee-high snow, Nate didn't make a sound. He inched forward through the grass until he saw it: Someone laying in the snow, with a rope tied around their neck. He whirled around, quickly scanning the forest for anyone or anything else, then bounded toward the motionless mass of rags. He turned it over, and was met with a dead man's face looking back at him. Skin clammy and blue, eyes glazed over and staring at nothing. Nate recognized him as Larry DiPietro, the Vault chaplain.

Nate stayed crouched there, unmoving for what felt like forever, letting the rage and anguish seep in, slowly smothering his thoughts. He finally took a breath, and slammed his fist into the tree. A small amount of snow fell from the leaves, drifting silently to the ground.

 _He must have hung himself last night, and the branch just broke. That must have been what happened._ Nate stared at the frozen corpse. Eyes like marbles. So calm. _But what if it wasn't what happened?_

Suddenly Nate began frantically sifting through the snow. Sweeping it aside with his arm, throwing handfuls of it to every side. _Come on, where is it?_ If Larry really did hang himself, there would be a stool, or a bucket, or something that he stepped off of. Panic began to set in as Nate began questioning the whole scenario. _Why did he hang himself instead of just shoot himself? Why did he come out here in the cold to do it, far enough away from camp where no one would hear a struggle?_

Finally, his hand bumped into something hard. He gripped it, and pulled it from the snow. An old wooden night stand. Probably from Larry's room. Nate finally exhaled and dropped it. _Those bastards have made me paranoid._

Nate looked over again at Larry's corpse. He had accidentally flung snow all over it. He wiped some off, and noticed something sticking out of his coat pocket. A folded up sheet of paper. He pulled it out and opened it, recognizing Larry's handwriting. It read: " _Our futures hold no one and nothing."_

Of course he killed himself. Larry had always been a nervous, frail man. Prone to stress eating. Even in the Vault, he was known to have… episodes, bordering on nervous breakdowns. He had no family. Few friends. Nate wasn't even sure if he had genuinely thought Larry was murdered, or if just believing that was better than facing the truth. That the man Nate had known for ten years had taken the easy way out.

He cut the rope from Larry's neck, and carried his body to the shed. _Two dead. What a fantastic fucking start to the day._ He shut the door to the shed behind him and marched back out between the houses and into the neighborhood. _It's not gonna be on me to deal with this._

When he arrived at Lincoln's tent, Nate peered inside. Sure enough, Lincoln was laying in bed on his side, like he said he would be. After a moment, Nate decided to give him his rest. The news could wait. Before he could step away however, Lincoln spoke up. "I'm not asleep. What is it?"

Nate froze. He couldn't look Lincoln in the eye. "Eun-Ji and Larry are dead. I thought you should know."

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 10, 2087. 2:51 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** "After lunch, why don't we go out and help them build the bonfires?" Nora asked him. He was staring at the floor, transfixed by a little pebble under the table. They were in the middle of lunch, just the two of them, over roasted cabbage and a can of pork and beans. Everyone else was in other rooms, or outside. "Nate?"

"Yeah." He looked up. "Yeah, I was gonna do that anyway."

"I know, I meant both of us."

"Yeah. If you want."

"I believe my buzz saw attachment could be of particular use to you, sir, if I may join you as well?" Codsworth piped up, floating in from the hallway.

"Knock yourself out." Nate said.

They continued their meal in a silence only interrupted by the clatter of forks on plates, and the house creaking and settling. After glancing at Nate a few times looking like she wanted to say something, Nora spoke up again. "I'm sorry it had to be you who… dealt with them." Nate kept his eyes on his plate. Nora sighed. "I'm sorry it had to be anyone, really. We were doing fine for so long, and then… two people freeze to death in one day? What does that tell us? Maybe we came up here too early. Maybe we should have waited until next year."

Nate suddenly spoke up. "Honey, I… I have to tell you something. A secret someone made me keep, and… I guess you'll have to keep it too."

"What is it?"

Nate set his fork down and took a deep breath. "Larry… didn't freeze to death. He hung himself out in the forest."

Nora stared at him for a moment, eyes wide. "But - Lincoln said-"

"I know. He lied. He said… if the camp found out what really happened, it might bring up talk of leaving the surface. Of going back to the Vault."

Nora didn't speak for a moment. She simply frowned down at her plate. Finally she took a breath. "Larry… committed suicide?" She took Nate's silence for a yes. "Why?"

Nate fidgeted uncomfortably. "He couldn't… he couldn't take it." He didn't like talking about suicide. Diving into people's motives for ending it all. He thought about Larry's note. "I guess he thought that going on was pointless in this world, trying to find a future where there isn't any."

Nora looked taken aback. "That's not what _you_ think?"

"Of course not. I'll _never_ lose hope, not while Shaun is still here. I'm just saying… we can't judge Larry too harshly." He gave Nora a moment to absorb the information. "Anyway, now you know the truth. Please… don't tell anyone. I agree with Lincoln, something like this could have a cascade effect on the camp."

"You know, people are already talking about going back to the Vault." Nora suddenly said.

"What?"

"Yeah. I hear them sometimes, late at night when I go out to smoke. The air is so still, I can hear right through the walls of the Reynolds' old house. It's Jessica, and… the Miltons, I think. Yammering on and on about how they should just pack their stuff and go back to the Vault."

Nate sighed. "Those idiots. Do they not realize how weak our grip on the surface already is?"

"I don't think they care. And I'm almost sure they're not the only ones talking about it."

Nate shook his head. "It didn't even have to come to this. We could have just made this point moot."

"What do you mean?" Nora asked.

"The mandatory shutdown. It was actually part of our official orders to do it. After leaving the Vault, we were supposed to start a process that would basically make it unlivable. Shutting down reactors, water purifiers, air circulation. It was probably devised to prevent exactly this from happening. But Lincoln thought it would be a waste."

Nora sat for a moment, seemingly pondering that. "I honestly think I agree. Keeping the Vault, as a fallback option at least, is better for us in the long run. I'm surprised you think it's a bad idea, given how hard you fought to stay in there."

"Look, I still have a lot of reservations about living on the surface, most of them about how young Shaun still is. But we're here. All of us. We've made a huge commitment to permanently settling here. We can't just give up, no matter how god awful it may be."

"Well, I'm with you. This is our home. We're not leaving it again."

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 10, 2087. 6:57 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** "Let's go, people!" Isaac shouted. "We want to get these fires going before it gets _really_ cold out here."

"He's a goddamn slave driver…" Harry muttered. Nate chuckled at that. After a few hours of hacking away at some of the dead trees surrounding Sanctuary, they had almost completed both bonfires. They were at the end of the cul-de-sac, situated around the dead oak tree. Eun-Ji and Larry lay at the top of their respective pyres, wrapped in thin blankets. Almost everyone from the Vault was gathered, weathering the deepening cold to pay their respects. Nate and Harry had just come back from the forest, carrying a big log together on their shoulders. A few others were at the bonfires, laying down loose twigs and sticks on the edges.

"I think that last log should do it, ladies and gentlemen." Lincoln said. He stood between the two wood piles, in front of everyone else. The low chatter stopped, and everyone bunched in closer around the tree. Nate and Harry heaved the log down, and took their places in the crowd. Nate could tell something was weighing on Lincoln's mind. "I know we're all cold out here, so I'll keep this appropriately brief." He leaned down and picked up a blowtorch. "We're here tonight to lay our friends, Eun-Ji Seong and Larry DiPietro to rest. Our first casualties," He lit the bonfires. "And hopefully our last for a very long time. May they find more peace in the afterlife than they did in this one."

The pyres were completely engulfed in seconds, unsurprising given the dead wood used to build them. They billowed heavy smoke for a while before settling into a brilliant orange blaze. Between the body heat of everyone gathered and the bonfires, a sort of warm haze had formed over everything. Smoky and still, with the calmness that comes from finally getting warm. It was unexpectedly peaceful. For a while they all stood there in solemn silence. Nate watched the smoke and the tiny embers rise into the air before dimming away, lost to the endless darkness.

It took him a while to notice Lincoln weaving through the crowd, whispering in people's ears. They would walk away and he would move to someone else. Eventually he got to Nate. "What's going on?" He asked.

"We need to talk. Meet me at my tent." Lincoln murmured.

He managed to slip away from the crowd, back into the cold. The sun was almost completely down. The braziers lining the sidewalk were reduced to smoldering cinders, having been neglected during the afternoon. The darkness and the emptiness gave the street an uncanny feeling, like he had just stepped into some alternate world. A shadowy limbo populated by the lost and damned.

"Oh." A voice behind him said. Nate wheeled around. David stood there, hands deep in his jacket pockets. "Hey."

Nate swallowed. "Hey." He replied. They began walking together down the street in an awkward silence, heavy with the weight of an unfinished argument. They rounded the corner back to the middle street, and saw two silhouettes in the darkness waiting by Lincoln's tent.

"What do you think Lincoln wants to talk to us about?" David asked.

"I… I'm not sure." Nate looked to his side. _Maybe he wants to let them in on the secret._

As they approached the tent, Nate recognized Jessica Sarantos and Jacob Whitfield standing there, shivering. "Nate. David. Is anyone else coming?" Jessica asked.

David looked back. "I didn't see anyone behind me." Nate stepped past them into the tent, and they followed him in.

"Jesus. Are these… radios?" Jessica asked, stepping over the wires into the tent.

"Yeah," Nate said. "Lincoln's taken it upon himself to establish contact with the government."

Jessica scoffed. "What government? You don't really think they're still around, do you?"

Nate looked at her. "Lincoln does."

They all sat themselves down wherever they could find room, moving over cables and wires. Then they just sat shivering for what seemed like forever, waiting. "Come on, Lincoln, where the hell are you…" Jacob muttered.

As if on cue, Lincoln stuck his head in through the flap. He frowned, and joined them inside. "I said _at_ my tent, not in it." He shook his head. "Anyway. I thought we should talk privately, while the rest of them are… distracted."

"You mean by the nice, warm fire out there?" David chattered out.

"Chin up, David. It's only going to get colder." Lincoln replied curtly.

"Oh, god." Jessica buried her face in her hands. "Four more months of this…"

"Alright, now. I didn't call you here so we could complain about the weather." Lincoln scolded. "Jacob, did you bring the inventory list?" Jacob brandished their 'inventory' from his coat. It was really just a notebook with a list of items written on it, along with quantities. Lately, a lot of things were crossed out. "Good. Now if you would please pass it around?" They complied, first to Jessica, then David, then Nate. It didn't show anything he didn't already know. They were low on clothing and food, especially sealed pre-war goods. "As you can all see, the situation is getting dire. We can't go on like this, just tilling up half-grown crops and wearing old long johns."

"We've been planning a supply expedition for weeks now. We were just hoping the weather would get slightly better…" David grumbled. "But now I realize that it's going to get worse before it gets better."

"Well, then we need to stop putting it off and go _now_." Jessica said. "Otherwise more people are going to end up like Eun-Ji. God, I still can't believe it. 24 hours ago I was trying to treat her, and now we're burning her body. I was feeding her _soup_ , to treat pneumonia, because we don't have any antibiotics!"

"I agree." Lincoln tried to placate her. "A resupply of medicine is also crucial."

"Now that I think about it, was wrapping them in blankets really a good idea?" David asked. "We could have used them to keep warm."

"That was a calculated decision on my part. I wanted people gathered around those bonfires tonight." Lincoln said, with a grim look on his face. "And the sight of two uncovered bodies burning to charcoal might turn people away." He stroked his goatee, keeping his eyes on the floor. "It's sick, but… the fires also serve a more pragmatic purpose. People can… gather around them and stay warm for a while. Think of it as Larry and Eun-Ji's gift to us. A nice, warm bonfire… and two less mouths to feed."

Without warning, Jessica smacked him across the face. "You're right. This is sick. _All_ of this is sick! I've had it! What are we even doing up here?! Is this some kind of mass suicide? Well, I won't be part of it!"

"Get a hold of yourself!" David hissed. "Do you want the entire camp to hear your hysterics?"

" _Yes!_ I want people to wake up! Our food supplies are almost gone, people are freezing to death right next to fires! We're living like homeless people when we've got a perfectly good _bunker_ waiting for us!"

Lincoln began shouting back. "We can't stay there forever! We were never supposed to! Our orders were to leave when the radiation cleared, and begin rebuilding-"

"Fuck our orders! What about surviving? No radiation doesn't mean it's livable here! I know a lot of people agree with me. We should put it to a vote, to decide-"

" _We'll do the supply run!_ " Nate roared, suddenly standing up. The arguing stopped, and everyone looked at him. "Tomorrow morning. As early as possible. David and I, and 3 other groups will head out, and we will find every single thing we could possibly need, and we won't come back until we do." _I'm not letting this go any further._ "We are going to make it up here. And _you_ are not putting anything to a vote." He growled, pointing at Jessica. "You want to go back to the Vault? I'll put you in the jail down there and forget about you." Jessica scoffed and folded her arms. "Or I would, if we didn't need a doctor."

"Can we all just calm down?" David threw his hands up. "No one needs to do anything crazy just to make a point. But you're right, a supply run is a good idea. I think that's something we can all get behind. Right?" Everyone begrudgingly nodded their heads.

Suddenly, a faint clamor could be heard from outside. A few shouts and cries. Nate could see a faint light bloom from outside, shimmering against the canvas of the tent. "Lincoln! Where are you?" Someone outside shouted.

The five of them rushed out the tent, and back around the corner to the cul-de-sac. They were met with an inferno. The fire from the bonfires had spread to the oak tree, and it was already being consumed. The others rushed past Nate, joining the crowd of frenzied people trying to put out the blaze. Flinging snow at it, throwing buckets of water up. Nate knew there was nothing they could do, and they would flee from it before it got too hot. The entire cul-de-sac glowed orange. Nate slowly walked toward the burning tree, entranced by it all. It reminded him of a mushroom cloud.


	6. Kneel In The Ashes

_Author's Note: Merry Christmas!_

 _Companion soundtrack for the chapter: "Desert Wind" - Fallout 1_

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 12, 2087. 7:32 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** Nate laid in the brown grass and watched the dull glow in the west fade away. The merciless freezing night approached, rushing to embrace them. Their only shield, a low-burning birchwood campfire, crackling unenthusiastically. David was sitting criss cross on the other side of the fire. He had taken their supplies out of the cart, and appeared to be taking inventory of them. A coil of rope. Snowshoes. Binoculars. A gas lamp once used for camping. Their pitiful rations. He kept sighing and rearranging them, as if that would make more appear. As the horizon turned black Nate finally cleared his throat. "It's only been a day. Stop fretting."

"I'm not. I just- I could've sworn I packed a can opener. I've been looking for it since this afternoon." David slapped his hands down on his thighs and shook his head. "Doesn't matter. It's not here and it's not going to be."

Nate sat up with a grunt. His pack was a shabby brown canvas bag. Old even before the War. He propped it up in the grass and rooted through it for a moment. "You know…" He said to David, "If you need something, you can just ask." He brandished a can opener and presented it to David. "A good soldier always comes prepared."

In truth, Nate carried very little besides that. The very reason for their journey: finding food, winter clothing, anything. Nate and David were one of four groups sent out in the cardinal directions, looking for supplies. Their chances of surviving the winter lessened with each passing day, and things in the camp were reaching a boiling point. Dr. Sarantos was not helping matters. _We just have to get through the winter. Just one winter, and we'll have a real chance at making it up here._

David sat opening a tin of something with a blue label. The sharp, crinkling metal sound had come to mean meal time for them and Nate sat up, eager to finally eat. Their dinner was a single tin of Cram along with a packet of ketchup. David had to cut the top off the whole tin because the pull tab was long gone. He flipped it over, the pink cube of meat slid out, and fell onto an aluminum pan with a wet squish. David cut the cube vertically with a ka-bar knife, separating their halves. He then set the pan in the embers near the fire. They watched in silence as the meat slowly began to sizzle.

In the army, Cram was a common meal. Near the end of the Anchorage Reclamation, MREs began to run out after years of being used, so the army substituted them with Cram, among other things. Nate remembered going days eating nothing else.

Finally the Cram began to turn reddish brown, black at the edges. The smoke and smell it gave off was mouth watering. They ate in silence, smearing their food across their tiny amount of ketchup to make it slightly less tasteless. Truthfully, their current situation didn't remind Nate of being in the army. The army had a certain gung-ho quality that came with having a solid, tangible goal. Moreso, this reminded him of the homeless people he would sometimes see in Boston. Huddling around a fire, wearing layers of shoddy hand-me-down clothing just to stop from freezing to death. Sometimes, Nate couldn't help but be disgusted by what they'd been reduced to.

After dinner, they made preparations to head to sleep. Nate gathered branches to rekindle the fire in the night. David constructed lean-tos out of rope and plastic tarp. Finally they met back at the fire, the world around them pitch black. As Nate unrolled his sleeping bag, David suddenly spoke up. "So, I gotta ask. What's the protocol if we… run into someone out here?"

Nate was taken off guard by the question. He stopped for a moment to think. "Do you really think there's anyone left out here?"

"We're here. The people who shot you are… somewhere."

Nate sighed. "Obviously, it depends on who it is. How threatening they look, how many of them there are. We size them up. Then we either talk, or send them on their way."

"And when they ask where our camp is?"

Nate shook his head. "We… we tell them we're travelling. Our story can be… I don't know, we came from a bunker that ran out of supplies."

David gave a weak chuckle. "That _is_ essentially what happened. But to be clear, we don't want to bring anyone back to Sanctuary?"

Nate grunted. "No."

"Good. I agree. God knows we don't have resources for any more people."

"Yeah." Nate said quietly. The ugly truth of this world was that they couldn't save everyone. They could barely save anyone.

"Okay. I just wanted to talk that over with you." David pulled out his sleeping bag. "You going to sleep?"

"Yeah."

"Alright. Goodnight."

For some time, Nate just laid in his sleeping bag, staring up at the starless dark. No sound at all but the fire and the wind whistling through the trees. It occurred to Nate that he and David hadn't spoken much recently aside from talking about plans or supplies. They had never officially patched things up after their spat on the 4th of July. Nate decided he would do just that in the morning. He doubted David was still angry, but their friendship seemed to have faded since then. There was a time when the two of them were almost like brothers, especially when David started thinking about stepping down as Overseer. Nate had his back through some turbulent times. But ever since they came to the surface, the connection had been lost. Like something in both of them had changed. He wondered if it was just stubbornness, or if the stress of returning to the surface had laid their true priorities bare. If there was now a fork in the road that would separate them permanently. Nate rolled over on his side, with his back to the fire. He fell asleep thinking about going home to Nora and Shaun.

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 13, 2087. 6:28 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** They rose at first light, after a night of waking constantly to reanimate the fire. Without some source of warmth or shelter it was simply not possible to survive a night out there. Even when the flames rose again, it was hard to get back to sleep. The chill reached Nate's bones. He figured he got maybe five hours of sleep, all in all.

For a while Nate circled around with binoculars, studying the wasteland in every direction. They were camped near the top of a hill, at the edge of a dead forest. It was dangerous because their fire could easily be seen from far away, but Nate reasoned it was a better tactical position than hiding in some ditch. He could see for miles to the north, south and east. Their goal, however, was south.

As Nate decided on where exactly to walk to, David sat in front of the fire, still in his sleeping bag. Arms outstretched. Mouth slightly agape. He looked like a zombie. "Have a good night's rest?" Nate asked him. He simply grunted and shook his head in response. Nate chuckled, and went back to the binoculars.

They had already passed through Concord on the first day, and found it a barren, graffitied ruin. Almost nothing of value. They were currently situated close to Lexington, but through the binoculars Nate could see a sort of brown haze over the whole town. He didn't trust it, and he certainly wasn't going any closer to it.

Nate ended up pulling the old map out of his bag and laying it out in the grass. It encompassed about 50 square miles of the Boston area. There wasn't any major landmarks closeby to the south, so Nate resolved to just wander through the various roads and towns, taking what they could. When presented with the plan, David just nodded, shivering. "Are you gonna be okay?" Nate asked.

He nodded again. "Just gotta get warm…"

"The sun will be fully up soon. And thankfully, the sky doesn't seem too cloudy today. Temperature might even hit double digits." _Unlikely, to be honest._

"We both know it won't." David stood up. "It'll be better to keep moving. Get some… friction. Are we ready to go?"

"Yep. Tarps and rope are all packed up." Nate folded up the map and slipped it back into the bag. Then he slung it over his shoulders and smothered the fire.

"I'll get the cart." David grabbed it by the bar and pushed it in front of him, like some old world grocery shopper.

As they trudged their way back down the hill, David reached up and pulled his face mask down. "I've been wondering," He said, his breath blowing out like smoke, "Was it this cold in Alaska?"

Nate snorted. "Hah. Nope… this is colder."

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 13, 2087. 10:11 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** The clear weather continued into the day, thankfully. Only intermittent clouds, with the dull periwinkle sky in between. More gray than purple. More purple than blue. Midmorning found them in what used to be farmland, now just vast stretches of flat waste. The dirt and chaff swirling around in the wind with the ash. Stinging his eyes. Looking down, Nate could see his green pants were coated in a layer of ash almost up to his knees. No one had come through here in ten years. This whole land was frozen in time and death.

They forged ahead wordlessly. Nate found himself absentmindedly staring at the ground. Daydreaming, listening to the eternal wind howling across the fields. Eventually they reached a point where the dead wheat was taller than before. Almost fully grown. Nate realized the fields they had been walking through hadn't simply died and blown away, they had been harvested. He looked to the east, and spotted the culprit. A massive combine harvester, about ninety feet away, slightly sunken in the dirt. A smile stretched across Nate's face. An idea occurred to him. "Look!" he shouted, pointing to it.

David's head jerked up as if he had been sleepwalking. "What? What?" He asked, spinning around. Nate broke out into a run. David tottered after him. "What is that, a tractor? Wait up!" Behind him, Nate could hear the cart bouncing and rolling across the dirt as David pushed it.

"It's a combine!" Nate shouted back.

They met at the combine, both panting. The wind gusting around them. "A combine? What, like for harvesting grain? There's no way we could get that running again."

"That's not what I'm trying to do." Nate climbed up the little ladder to look in the cab. After wiping a film of dust off the glass, he was met with a skeleton slumped back in the seat, black as tar. He thought about opening the door and looking at the controls, but… he decided to let old ghosts rest. Instead he clambered up on top of the combine, looking for some kind of latch, or handle. "If we can just open the grain tank…"

"Oh. _Oh._ I see what you're going for. You want to collect the wheat they harvested."

"Exactly. The grain tank is still sealed too, so-"

"So the wheat won't be contaminated! That's perfect!" David laughed.

Nate found the mechanism to open it. A small latch, easily flipped up. He was worried the hatch might require special tools to open. But no, he was able to simply swing it up, with the piercing screech of rusted metal.

David looked up at Nate, waiting for his reaction. There was still the chance that someone might have had the same idea before them, and that the tank would be empty. "Well?" He asked.

Nate looked at him, and gave a small smirk. "Jackpot." He murmured. David threw up his arms, and laughed triumphantly. The grain tank was nearly full to the top. The wheat inside gold as any treasure should be. "Let me check it with the geiger counter, just to be sure."

"Right." David pulled it out of his pack and tossed it up. Nate's theory was correct - the grain tank had shielded the wheat from radiation.

"It's clean!" Nate said. "There's enough in here for a month's worth." He was about to drop the geiger counter back down when he stopped dead.

Massive clouds were gathering to the southwest. Glowing green, lightning raging within them. Billowing toward Nate and David with alarming speed.

"Jesus. David! Look!" Nate shouted. The clouds were about a mile out, rolling down a hill, blanketing it in green fog.

David turned around. "What the hell?"

"We need to hurry! Quick, toss me up one of the burlap sacks-"

"There's no time! Those clouds will be here inside a minute! We've got to run!"

He was right. Nate looked down at the wheat. _Damn it. We can't just leave this behind._ Then he realized the solution was simple. He swung the lid back down and secured the latch. _It's held out this long…_

Nate jumped down off the combine. The clouds were almost on them. The metallic roar of the lightning loud enough to drown out his thoughts. "What about the cart? It'll slow us down!" David yelled.

Nate whirled around, looking for somewhere to stash it. "The cab!" He yelled back. He jumped back on the combine and ripped open the cab door. "Here, help me lift it up!" They hoisted the cart up and hastily jammed it into the cab, knocking over the skeleton. It was barely able to fit. Nate slammed the door shut and sealed it. "Let's go!"

They took off northeast, almost going back the way they came. Nate's heart was pounding frantically. The only sound he could hear was the clouds behind him. He looked back for a split second to see if David was still behind him. He was, but he was barely keeping up. _God damn it. We're so out of shape. This is what we get for not doing any cardio training._ He was already getting tired. He imagined David was doing even worse. Panic began to take hold of him. He imagined what would happen to Nora and Shaun if he never came back. No matter how much his lungs burned, he didn't stop. He turned back again. The green fog was swirling around behind them, slowed down by the flat terrain. They were barely outpacing it, but they wouldn't be able to go on for much longer.

They sprinted through a small thicket of dead trees before bursting out into a broken highway road. "There!" David wheezed, pointing a quivering hand further down the road. A large blue cylinder, about eight feet tall by the roadside. As they stumbled toward it, Nate realized what it was - a Pulowski Preservation Shelter. Designed to protect from radiation. _Thank god… we might actually make it._ In one final burst of energy, they ran perpendicular to the advancing storm, past a pile of bones, over a pool of black water in the middle of the asphalt. Nate pulled the door open, triggering some jingle he could barely hear over the lightning. A fan in the ceiling spun up just as David practically fell over into the shelter. There was just enough room for both of them inside. _Why isn't the door closing?_ Nate noticed a bunch of buttons high on the wall to his left. He made his best guess for whichever one was the door control, and smashed his fist against it. They both let out a sigh of relief as the door slid shut with another jingle.

The booth shook slightly as the storm engulfed it from outside. No sound but the metallic lightning reverberating in the air and their panting. David slid down to a sitting position against the wall of the booth. "That was _way_ … too goddamn close."

Nate looked up at the light inside and the spinning fan. "How's this thing even working, anyway?"

"You can probably thank Mass Fusion for that. I bet their reactor cores still haven't decayed."

Nate realized the geiger counter was still in his hand. He was gripping it so hard his knuckles were white. "Oh." He murmured. He shook it a little, checking to see if it would click. "Well, at least we know the seal is good."

"It's a miracle, honestly." David said dryly. "Everyone at Vault-Tec said these things were just glorified refrigerators… maybe that was just corporate posturing, though."

"How long do you think until that storm passes?"

David shrugged. "You got me. For all we know, that's something that's spreading across the entire world, to finally finish us off." That got him a dirty look from Nate. "But, on a less hopeless note… let's say it's just a storm that's been heavily irradiated somehow." He shrugged again. "An hour or two?"

Nate sighed. "Then let's settle in, I guess. And hope there's a way out of this."

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 13, 2087. 11:02 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** They didn't say much after that. Nate began counting the seconds between the lightning sounds, to see if the time was increasing or decreasing. Wondering if it even meant anything either way. After a while his mind began wandering. Old experiences, memories. So far back in the past it scared him into thinking this really was the end. Friends he made in boot camp, his parents. The life he had built with Shaun and Nora. _We had some good years in the Vault._ He wondered if he would ever have any more. A truly good year, where every day wasn't a struggle for survival. Where they could just live. _Maybe not in my lifetime. Maybe I just have to make the best of what I've got._

He looked over at David, slumped over with his head between his knees. _Now's as good a time as any, I guess._ "So, I was thinking…" Nate started, awkwardly trailing off.

David raised his head. "Yeah?"

"We had a pretty big argument, back on the 4th of July." Nate sighed. "Seems kind of stupid now, but I remember being angry at you for a while. I'm sure you were angry at me." He squirmed awkwardly. "I'm just trying to say… I'm sorry. Whatever differences we've had, they're in the past. I don't want things to be weird between us."

David didn't answer for a while. "Are you just saying this because you think we're going to die?"

"Wh- what? No!"

"Because I was just kidding about that. I'm sure it'll pass soon."

Nate became flustered. "I've been wanting to do this for a while, actually."

"I'm just saying, I didn't want to scare you!" David laughed. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't deflect with humor." He sat quietly for a moment, thinking. "I was never really angry with you. A little disappointed, maybe. But I understood why you didn't want to leave. Maybe I was just being selfish."

"Nah…" Nate said quietly. "Everyone wanted to leave."

"It doesn't matter now, either way. We're on the surface, so there's no argument to be had. Not with you, anyway, I know that. The way you chewed out Jessica." David chuckled. "God, I thought you were about to put her in a headlock, or something."

Nate tried not to smile at that, but he couldn't help it. "She had to be shut down. We _cannot_ start voting on things like that. Drawing a line between everyone in the camp. That's why we have an Overseer."

"That's a little hypocritical of Lincoln though, isn't it? All that talk about America, and democracy, and he won't take a vote on anything." David mused.

"Hypocritical or not, he shouldn't."

"You know, there's a few people from the Vault who think _you_ would be a good Overseer."

"What? Who?"

"Cindy, for one. But she's just a kid. I know your security team would support you. And hell, your wife's the magistrate. That's a lot of pull you'd have."

Nate began laughing at him. "Don't even start with that! I know you're just fucking with me."

"Well, just give me a heads up if you ever start thinking about a military coup. I want to be your Vice President. Less pressure." David grinned at him. Nate just shook his head, still laughing.

 _Well, that went well._ He leaned back against the wall, feeling like a weight had been lifted off of him.

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 13, 2087. 11:40 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** After a while, they noticed that the lightning had stopped. There seemed to be no sound at all coming from outside. So they decided to take a split-second reading outside with the geiger counter. Nate stood ready at the door, holding it raised in front of him. David was behind him, with his hand on the open button. "Okay, do it." Nate said.

It was over within a second. The door slid open, Nate stuck the geiger counter outside, then pulled it back in as the door slid back shut. "God damn it. I could barely hear anything over that stupid jingle. But the storm was definitely gone. And the meter didn't tick up."

"I think we've spent enough time in here." David said. Nate nodded in response, and he opened the door again.

The landscape seemed unscathed. The storm had left behind a dense fog, but little else. As they stepped out, the same broken, gray world as before awaited them. They moved cautiously, holding the geiger counter in front of them as they walked. Nate noticed the previously black pool of water had turned a bright, toxic green. Moving carefully to avoid it, they began heading back the way they came. "Let's hurry." Nate said. "We left our guns in the cart." _Stupid, greenhorn mistake. We've gotta be smarter than that if we want to make it._ Much as he tried to remember it, most of Nate's army training had faded over the years. All the endless drills and exercises that had once been burned into his brain almost felt like they had happened to someone else entirely.

It took them a while to find their way back. The panic of running from the storm had turned them around, and they almost found themselves lost in a backwoods road. But eventually they found a mile marker and remembered its location from the map. From there it was a hurried trek back to the wheat fields where the combine was. After a quick scan for radiation, the cart and grain were reclaimed. They managed to fill all five burlap bags they brought with the wheat grain. There was still plenty left in the tank, but it would require return trips to carry. All they would have to do would be to grind it into flour, and Diane would probably be able to do something with it. Even if it was something as primitive as skillet bread, it would be food. Nate's stomach growled just thinking about it.

And so they pushed on, with a general southern heading. They took turns pushing the cart, two miles each. By then they had moved far enough away from Sanctuary that they could go any direction they wanted without encroaching on anyone else's search areas, but nowhere they could go promised anything useful. And for a while it seemed nowhere they went _provided_ anything useful. A small town flooded with water, all the wooden houses warped and rotten and stinking. A few bloated corpses floating in the water. Out of sheer desperation, they spent a while there wandering around the upper floors of the buildings picking through damp trash. They took down a few curtains, resolving to use them as blankets. A few jars of preserved vegetables - tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, laid hidden in the back of a walk-in pantry. After a while David simply said "I want to leave this place." and that was enough for Nate.

Walking through the ruins of old Massachusetts had a disquieting effect on them. The more urban areas they passed through, the more it seemed no one was alive out there. They had only two encounters with animals. The first was when what looked like a fox scampered out of a house they were searching, and the second was when Nate spotted a pack of wild dogs through his binoculars, sniffing around in a gas station down the road. "At least something has survived…" Nate muttered before they turned around and went in the opposite direction.

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 13, 2087. 7:24 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** By late afternoon they had been pushed westward. The interstate road was packed edge to edge for miles with wrecked cars, black and rusted and half-buried. Nate had to push the cart through the snow at the side of the road, with the setting sun nearly blinding him. Then, as if that wasn't enough already, a light snow began to fall. Grayer than usual. Nate tried to ignore it until David suddenly started sputtering and spitting behind him.

"Eugh! What the hell? What is this, ash?" Nate stopped and caught a flake in his hand. Sure enough, ash, falling out of the sky like snow. Presumably carried in on the clouds from some distant incinerated city. It could very well be all that was left of the people who died in Boston, literally raining down on them. Nate resisted the urge to vomit.

"This is disgusting. Let's find some shelter, quick." Nate said, pulling his scarf over his mouth. They doubled their pace, trundling through the snow as quickly as possible. Nate's arms began to shake more violently against the handle of the cart. His strength was finally giving out. Between the cold and the distance and the lack of food, it was a wonder he had lasted this long. The road seemed to stretch forever, unyielding.

"Wait!" David shouted, and they both stopped. "There, in the woods. There's a little house." Nate strained trying to turn the cart to his right. David seemed to take notice of this, and took over for him. "Here, I've got it. You've pushed long enough." The darkness of the forest made it even colder than before, and Nate's legs grew heavier with each labored step. The dead, leafless trees let the sun through a little, but night was already encroaching. As the structure in the woods came into view, Nate could tell it was some kind of industrial building, only one floor. Maybe a power substation. Concrete walls, metal railing with chipped and cracked yellow paint, along a ramp that led up to a rusted metal door. Small windows near the ceiling.

They crashed through the metal door into a room that looked like it had been lived in long ago. Newspapers all over the place - plastered over the windows, stacked in the corners, a pile of them seemingly built into a rough bed. But there was no one there, and there was nowhere for anyone to hide. So they pushed the cart in and sat down, too exhausted to do anything about the bitter cold. Eventually David pushed himself to his feet and began digging through the cart. "I'm gonna get a fire going." He said quietly.

Nate laughed, and pulled his scarf down from his mouth. "Who would've guessed I crapped out before you did?"

"It's my goddamn fault. I let you push the cart longer than you should have." David pulled out a hatchet.

"Ah, you did fine…" Nate muttered, closing his eyes. When he opened them again, David was gone. _Did I fall asleep?_ He sat up a little bit. It was almost completely dark, with only a very faint glow coming from the windows. _I didn't even notice him leaving._ Sure enough, Nate could hear a dull thumping coming from outside. The hatchet against wood. He sat back and started resting his eyes.

Minutes passed. The darkness continued to encroach on him. When the cold became too much to bear he stood and began pacing, rubbing his arms against his chest. _What is taking him so long?_ Finally he decided to check on David. He found the gas lamp in the cart and lit it, illuminating the gray, dingy room in a white light. Then he was about to leave but something stopped him. A little voice in the back of his head that said _be smart._ He went back to the cart and pulled out his Rangemaster rifle, and slung it over his shoulder. Then he was ready.

A cold gust of air washed over him as he shuffled back out the door. The ash continued to fall, forming delicate stacks on the naked tree branches. There wasn't a soul in sight. Nate couldn't make out any tracks in the ashen snow. "David!" He half shouted, half whispered. No response. Dread began to creep in as he ventured further into the gray murk. Shadows danced on the snow and trees. The forest alive with movement all around him, shadow puppets.

A sudden whisper to his right made him nearly jump out of his skin. "Nate!" He whirled around to see David crouched near a tree, beckoning him over.

Nate knelt down and scrambled over to him. "David! What the fuck? Why didn't you say anything?" He hissed.

David suddenly raised his finger to his lips in a shushing motion. Then he pointed into the woods. "Look." He breathed. Nate squinted in the direction he pointed, trying to decipher anything out of the blackness. But he didn't notice it until it moved. Four legs silently pawing through the snow. An eye reflecting the light from his lamp. _It's looking at us._ An Eastern Coyote, judging by the lean silhouette. Or maybe just a dog. Either way, it was hungry, and it had just found two potential meals. Hunched over, belly low to the ground. Rearing for a fight. "It must have heard me chopping wood. It keeps watching me, but it won't get any closer." David whispered. "I was afraid it might charge me if I moved. I didn't know what to do."

"It's alright." Nate said. "You just found our dinner." He set the lamp in a snow drift to his left and pulled the rifle off of his shoulder. He took a deep breath and raised it to a firing position, pressing his arm against the tree for support. But as soon as he trained his sights on the canine, it bolted out of sight, deeper into the dark. "Damn it!" Nate groaned. "It's circling us." He snapped to his feet, keeping the rifle ready. "Get the lamp! Hurry!" He barked at David, who snatched the lamp out of the snow and then scurried back behind Nate. "We're gonna double back to the building. Just stay calm, and don't give it an opening." They moved slowly, with Nate stepping backward and David watching his flank. Nothing at all laid beyond the glow of the lamp. No trees. No stars. The dark was impenetrable. _If we can just get back to the building, we can fight this on our terms._

"NATE! THERE'S MORE!" David screamed behind him. Without thinking twice he spun around, rifle ready. Two more hounds materialized from the dark, rushing them. In the split second before firing his weapon he noticed how ghastly they looked. Emaciated, with tufts of brittle fur splotched over pink, scarred skin. It didn't look like any coyote. With a bang and a flash, the nearest mongrel collapsed into the snow, and its packmates went bounding back into the dark.

"Grab it!" Nate shouted. "Grab it and let's go!" David gripped the dead creature by the paw and began dragging it back. Nate covered him as he went, eyes fixed on the sightless void around him. Finally they found their way back to the shelter, after tottering around in the dark for longer than they should have.

"Is that door gonna keep the others out?" David asked as it shut behind them.

"Unless they learned how to pull." Nate grunted. He staggered over to the cart and stowed his rifle. "Tell me you got the firewood."

"Yeah, there's a whole bundle in here." He pulled his duffel bag off of his shoulder and dumped it out on the floor.

Nate dragged the mongrel over near the wood pile. Then he unsheathed his knife. "I don't know about you, but I'm starving."

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 13, 2087. 8:38 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** Nate stared into the glowing embers as the last of the dog roasted over the fire. They had both eaten their fill, and decided the weather was cold enough to preserve the rest of the meat and bring it back home. Nate had mangled most of the skin getting the meat out, and it was basically useless. _Should have taken me hunting, Dad._ There wasn't much fur on it anyway, but if they found an animal that did have fur, they could make clothing from it.

Across from him, David sat with his arms around his knees, with a blank look on his face. Gazing into nothing. Nate reached over and pulled the meat away from the fire. It was skewered on a stick, still sizzling and popping as he held it up. "You sure you don't want any more?" He asked.

David shook his head, covering his mouth. "I… I really can't." He looked pale, like he was about to be sick.

"Are you alright?"

He shook his head again, and cleared his throat. "I've never… eaten dog before."

Nate sighed, and began wrapping the meat in a piece of cloth. "Neither have I. Can't say I enjoyed it, but we better get used to it." He stowed it in his pack. "We're gonna have to start hunting for food. Or keeping livestock. We've got it easy right now. Eventually, we're gonna run out of Cram, and salisbury steak, and everything like that. It'll all be eaten or taken by someone else."

"I wasn't asking for a lecture…" David muttered.

Nate shrugged. "I'm just trying to warn you. We're gonna end up eating worse than dog at some point. If it comes down to it."

That seemed to snap David out of his trance. He shot a piercing look at Nate. "You're _not_ saying what I think you're saying."

"What?"

David leaned in closer. " _Cannibalism?_ " He whispered.

Nate frowned at him. "I really hope you're joking."

"You were the one suggesting it, not me."

"I was _not_ suggesting cannibalism. Jesus, I don't even want to go there."

David threw his hands up defensively. "Me neither. Me neither."

Having eaten as much dog as he could stomach, Nate decided it was time to turn in for the night. He pulled out his sleeping bag and laid it close to the fire. The building was fairly well insulated, and no wind or cold air invaded the room. It was much better than sleeping in the frozen dirt. They had enough firewood gathered to keep the fire lit through the night. _I might actually get some decent sleep this time._

David was sitting criss cross on his own sleeping bag. "So, where are we going tomorrow?"

"I'm not completely sure. Southeast, probably." He would have to look at the map to be sure, and he wasn't going to do that right before bed.

"Okay. Well, if we're going southeast, it's… what? Twenty five, thirty miles from here to the coast? How long do you think that would take to walk?"

"To walk? In the old days, about 24 hours. Now, I'd say at least 72."

"Do you think we have enough time for that kind of trip?"

"It's not a matter of time. We'd have to go through Boston to get to the water, which is way too dangerous."

"Well, there's more coast than just Boston. What if we went north, circled around?"

"That would just add more days to the trip."

"So it _is_ a matter of time."

Nate grunted. "I just don't like getting that close to Boston either way. And yeah, it is kind of a matter of time, I want to get home eventually. What's at the coast, anyway?"

David took a deep breath. "Well… it's kind of a personal thing. A long time ago, I remember my daughter telling me that… if she ever died before me, she wanted to be laid to rest at sea." He kept his eyes on the fire. "She loved the water. She'd take a boat out at least once a month, and just sail along the coast. We'd fish sometimes." He cleared his throat, and sniffled. "Anyway, I couldn't stop thinking about that. What she told me. I don't know if you remember, but she was at CIT when the bombs hit."

He waited for Nate to respond. "Yeah. I remember." Nate said quietly. David's daughter, Jeanne. It was one of the first things Nate learned about him, but he hadn't talked about her for years.

"I know she didn't survive. No one there did. I don't expect to find anything but ashes and rubble. And… well, even if they aren't _her_ ashes,-"

"You want to spread them at sea." Nate finished. David nodded solemnly. Nate cleared his throat. "We don't have a boat." He said flatly.

"No, I know. We could just go to a dock or something."

Nate shifted uncomfortably. "Look, I… I understand that it would be important for you. You know, I sympathize." David stared at him, eyes like globes. "But now's just not the time for… personal detours. Not this trip."

David seemed genuinely shocked at that, then… embarrassed? He suddenly frowned and threw his gaze to the floor. "I- no, you're right. You're right." He unzipped his sleeping bag. "I don't know what I was thinking. This is too important for…" He muttered, trailing off. He began crawling into his sleeping bag. "Anyway, long day tomorrow. Better get some sleep."

"We'll have more chances. We'll be coming out here a lot for supplies, and hunting. I'll go with you eventually, I promise. After winter has passed."

David stopped. "Yeah. Okay." He said quietly. Then he laid on his side, with his back to Nate. "Thanks."

Once again, Nate laid back in his sleeping bag. Watching the smoke from the fire stain the ceiling black. It pained him to put off David's attempt at closure, but he knew it was the right choice. They didn't have the luxury to spend almost a week on ceremonies, not as they approached the heart of winter. The dead could wait. Their own troubles were more material. He thought about what they had collected so far. Five bags of wheat grain, six jars of assorted vegetables. A few pounds of dog meat. Some musty curtains and a few articles of shabby clothing. A meager offering for 72 people. _After winter has passed. If we even make it that long._

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 14, 2087. 7:49 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** Nate awoke the next morning to sunlight bleeding in through the plastered windows. For the first time in months, he had slept through the dawn. He only got up once in the night to pile more wood on the dying fire. The rest had been a deep, dreamless sleep.

The fire was now nothing but white cinders. Nate climbed out of his sleeping bag and gathered up the remaining firewood. After stuffing it in the cart he pulled out his PIP-Boy to check the time. "Shit…" He muttered. He went to David and shook him in his sleeping bag. "Wake up." He snatched up his own sleeping bag and put it on top of the firewood. "We're losing daylight."

David sat up and looked around the room, dishevelled and disoriented like some drunk. "What time is it?"

"Almost eight."

"Jesus. I can't believe we slept in."

There would be time to look over the map later. For now, Nate just wanted to get back on the road. "Pack up your stuff. We'll head out when I get back."

David looked up. "Get back? Where are you going?"

Nate scooped up a sheet of newspaper from the corner. "Behind a tree."

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 14, 2087. 7:57 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** After finishing his business, Nate made his way back to the building. There hadn't been snow that night, so the snow on the ground had begun slowly melting, mixing with the ash in soggy clumps. A gloomy scene, but better than being stuck in a snowstorm. He saw no sign of any dogs. The world had gone back to being silent and lifeless. Sometimes he just couldn't help but soak in the utter stillness of the surface. In his youth he lived in cities, constantly overwhelmed with the sound of cars, people arguing, planes flying overhead. The thunderous roar of the Old World. The Vault was different, but there was always something in his ears there, too. The air vents hissing, hydraulic doors opening and closing, computer banks humming and beeping.

But not here. Here, there was nothing but the occasional gust of wind rustling the carbonized, gray trees. The silence of a thing long dead. He was entranced by it. It was like the equivalent of staring into pitch darkness.

Nate was so deep in his thoughts that he almost missed the corpse standing by a tree near him. Leaning against it, with a putrefied hand pressed against the trunk. Almost hiding. It took him a moment to even register what he was looking at. The shock was so sudden, and he was so close to it that he actually stumbled back and fell. The corpse spun around, and he got a look at its face. Noseless, black eyes, skin like a burn victim. It just stared at him like a deer in headlights. Nate jumped to his feet and pointed his rifle at it out of sheer panic. It threw its arms up and staggered back, cowering. "Wait! P- please!" It croaked.

"Oh my god!" Nate screamed. "What the fuck?!" _How is it talking?!_ Even when shrinking down and begging for mercy, it still terrified him. _This can't be real. I'm having a nightmare._

"I didn't mean- I was just- Please don't shoot me!" Its voice was like sandpaper.

" _David!_ " Nate bellowed.

"No! Just- just- I don't have anything! Take what you want from my shelter!" It was practically on its back by now, arm raised as if it could block a bullet.

"Your shelter?"

David burst out of the door, pistol in hand. "Nate! Where are you?" He yelled.

"Over here!" Nate called back, not taking his eyes off the corpse. "Were you watching us? Is this where you live?" He interrogated.

"I wasn't watching you. I was just waiting for you to leave. I don't want any trouble." He wheezed.

David came running over. His reaction upon seeing the corpse man was similar to Nate's. "Jesus Christ! What- what happened to you?"

The corpse man just stared at the ground, looking ashamed. "Everything." He mumbled. David began inching closer to him, fascinated. "I didn't have anywhere to go when the bombs fell."

"David, be careful." Nate said.

"Were you burned, by the explosions?" David asked, the scientist in him taking over.

The man took a while to respond. "No." He finally said. "It was so long ago…" He trailed off. His voice seemed somehow familiar to Nate.

"Did you have any kind of medical help? I can't see how you could survive injuries like that without it." David inquired.

"I didn't have help from anyone."

Nate raised his hand. "Hold on. Before we get too chummy…" He approached the man and slung his rifle back. "Stand up and raise your arms." He took time getting to his feet, like some decrepit old man. "So you're alone out here?" Nate asked.

"Yes." The man whispered.

Nate began patting him down. He was wearing a long, filthy coat that looked like it was once yellow, now closer to black. Threadbare wool gloves stretched over his bony fingers. Ginger hair clinging to his head in thin strands. Nate tried not to judge him by his appearance, but he was truly gruesome. Satisfied that he had no weapons on him, Nate stepped back. "What's your name?"

He was a long time thinking about that, like he hadn't recalled it in years. "Paul." He murmured. "It was Paul."

"Well, Paul, why don't we continue this inside?" Nate directed him back in, making sure to keep his eyes on him. Their things were all packed, and the cart was positioned near the door.

"Is it just the two of you?" Paul asked, trying to sound casual.

"Yup. We just travel around, looking for supplies." Nate replied quickly. "We, uh… we've been living in a bunker since the war. Just left it a few months ago."

"A bunker, huh? I should have lived in a bunker too, but they… left me out here to die."

Nate grunted. "I'm sorry about that."

"I still don't understand how… this happened to you, exactly." David said.

"It didn't happen all at once. My skin just began to peel off bit by bit. It was probably the radiation. I… I don't like to think about it."

"That ought to have killed you." Nate said brusquely.

"I suppose it should have." Paul replied.

"You look like a corpse. You _smell_ like a corpse." David said.

"Maybe I am one. I don't know… this world is changing. Full of things you wouldn't believe. Nightmares."

"What have you seen?" David asked quietly.

"There's a lot of people like me. I know that. We were the only kind of people alive up here for a few years." He bent down and sat on the floor with a great sigh. "Giant… insects. Mutated crabs the size of a man, cut your arm off in one snap. Monsters in the dark, everywhere you go."

"We haven't run into anything like that." Nate said.

Paul shrugged. "Then you've been lucky."

"Not quite so lucky. What kind of people are out here? Survivors?" Nate pushed.

"Sure. A few small settlements. None of them will take in… someone like me. Other than that, nomads. People looking for someplace safe."

"What about the kind of people who shoot first and ask questions later?"

"That's who I thought you were. Yeah, they're out here too. Bandits, robbers. Most of them will tell you how sorry they are as they shuffle away carrying everything you have. People are just too… worn out, to act really treacherous. They do these things out of sheer desperation."

 _That doesn't really help us._ After all this time, Nate still had no idea why they were shot at, that day. There seemed to be no motive for such a sudden, violent attack. The mystery of the whole thing still haunted him.

"What were you doing out there when we found you? You weren't home last night." David asked.

Paul shuffled around, looking uncomfortable. "I was out looking for food. Found a few scraps for dinner. When I finally got back, I could see a light through the window, a fire inside. I try to keep to myself. Avoid confrontation. People are hostile enough as it is without mistaking me for a zombie. So I went and hid in a nearby cave until morning. I was checking to see if you had left, when… well, you know." The more he talked, the more Nate felt like he recognized him somehow.

"You just live in here? There's practically nothing here." David motioned around at the bare room.

Before Paul could reply, Nate spoke up. "I'm sorry. I just- listening to you talk… do I know you from somewhere?"

"Wh- what?"

"You just sound so familiar somehow. I feel like I've heard your voice before, when it wasn't so scratchy." Paul looked confused. _The ginger hair. The yellow coat._ "You said you were supposed to live in a bunker… oh my god. Did- did you used to work for Vault-Tec?" Nate questioned.

Paul squinted at him. "How did you know that?"

"That's where I know you from! God! It was the night of the war! I remember now. You came to my house to register us for Vault 111!"

"Seriously? That was him?" David asked.

"I… I remember doing that just before the war. Going house to house trying to get people to sign up. I don't quite remember you, though."

"You mostly talked to my wife, Nora. Then, when the bombs came, they wouldn't let you past the gate." Nate sighed. "Jesus. I'm so sorry. For years, I've thought about how lucky it was that you came to our door that night. I can't even imagine where we'd be if you hadn't."

Paul scoffed. "Twenty years of loyal service to Vault-Tec, and this is where it got me."

"Listen. I can't give you back all those years you lost out here… but I can give you a place to stay now."

"Nate?" David whispered.

"What do you mean?" Paul croaked.

"Well, I didn't exactly tell you the whole truth before. We did recently leave the Vault, but we're not on our own. We've got a whole camp, 72 people, living in the neighborhood outside the Vault. I want to extend you an invitation to live there with us."

"What?" Paul and David said, in unison.

"Nate, I thought we agreed-" David started.

"David. Come on. I literally owe him my life."

"N- no, I don't think that's such a good idea." Paul said.

Nate folded his arms. "Why not? I can see how you live here, and it's not well." _If I'm being blunt, so be it._

Paul scowled. "You really have to ask that? People see me and they _scream_. They think I'm a monster."

"Okay. I'll admit you can be kind of a shock at first. But It doesn't take long to see that you're not a monster. You're just a man." Nate stepped closer to him. "I promise, you will not be an outcast. We're not like those other people."

Paul stared at the floor. "I really… don't want to do this…" He mumbled.

Nate gave him an encouraging slap on the shoulder. "Paul. It's time to stop living like a hermit. At least give it a try."

"Why do you feel like you owe me anything? I don't even know you, really. We spoke for… seconds, a decade ago."

"Me and my family would be dead if you hadn't knocked on my door that night. This is the least I can do."

Paul didn't say anything. He barely moved. After a while, Nate realized he was quietly sobbing. Eventually he gasped and raised his head, tears streaming down his ruined face. "Oh, you're right! I haven't had a conversation with anyone in years. I live like an animal. I probably won't even survive another winter here!" He sank to his knees. "I need… to start living again." He snivelled. "I'll go with you."

Nate helped him to his feet. "Good. I'm telling you, you'll be a big help to us. We barely have a clue what it's really like out here."

"Nate… are you sure about this?" David whispered.

"Yes. This is about more than just emotion." Nate told him.

The three of them stepped outside, with Nate pushing the cart. They followed the forest path back out into the main road. Paul had almost nothing to bring along from his shelter, so the cart wasn't much heavier than before. "Like I said, we're still on a supply run. So you can travel with us for a few days until we head back home." Nate said.

"Alright. I- I can tell you some good spots to maybe find some things." Paul rasped.

"See? You're helping us already." Nate said. The cars packed together in the road were now caked with ash. "In the meantime, we've got plenty to talk about. I need to ask something of you. I want you to tell me everything you know about the other groups out here."


	7. Indomitable

**NOVEMBER 12, 2087. 9:13 A.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** "Why does it always have to be you?" Nora asked. Ever since they met, Nate was always being sent off somewhere. She had endured four years of him going in and out of the army, with each time being promised as the last. She recognized the signs, the same patterns of behavior as before. Nate feels someone or something needs him, and he springs into action. Duty calls. It was a trait that she simultaneously admired and despised. She knew it was selfish. She knew that the camp needed supplies. But the question still stood. _Why does it have to be him?_

"I'm sorry, honey." Nate told her. "I didn't plan to… volunteer myself. But who knows what we'll find out there. It's dangerous. I'm kind of needed either way."

"You're not the only person here who knows how to use a gun."

"It's not gonna be like this all the time. Once we have more training, and we know what it's like out there, I'll leave supply runs to other people." They stood at the northern bank of the river, at the edge of the wooden footbridge that was in desperate need of repair. She was about to see him off, departing on a trip that would end when it needed to and not a second sooner. Shaun and Codsworth were there as well, hovering a few feet away while they talked. Beyond them, David leaned against a cart they had constructed for the trip, waiting to leave. A cold blue light hung over the morning.

Nora motioned Shaun and Codsworth to join them. Nate knelt down as Shaun sauntered up to him. "Hey, buddy." Nate said. Shaun kept his eyes down. He had been sulking ever since they told him Nate would be leaving for a while. Nora hardly had the heart to admonish him for it.

"Why do you have to go?" Shaun moaned.

Nate sighed. "Like I told Mom, we need food, and supplies for the winter." He frowned. "You've never really had a real winter, have you?"

"I read about it in school. It feels like we're already there." He rubbed his hands together. "But why can't you send someone else to look for food?"

Nate put his hand on Shaun's shoulder. "It's too important, buddy. I can't just sit back and leave it in someone else's hands. Not this time." Shaun blinked, and a tear rolled down his cheek. "Oh. Come here, Shaun." Nate hugged him. "I promise you, I will come back. No matter what."

Nora knew that Shaun would have difficulty with living on the surface. For better or worse, he had lived an incredibly sheltered life, worrying about nothing beyond the trivial concerns of the small community he grew up in. She was grateful for that, but it was poor preparation for the world they had come into. _I need to make him strong._

Nate let go of Shaun and stood to face Codsworth. "Well. Take care of them, Codsworth." He said.

"Not to worry, sir. I won't let a hair on their heads be disturbed."

Nate nodded, and turned back to Nora. "I meant what I said. This isn't gonna be routine."

"I'll hold you to that." She replied.

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 20, 2087. 12:16 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** Nora presented the gun to him, holding it flat in both hands. "Take it, Shaun." She commanded.

"I… I don't want to." Shaun fidgeted.

"That doesn't matter. You can't be afraid of it." Shaun still just ogled it nervously. "There's not even any bullets in it. You just have to hold it." He slowly raised a gloved hand to the weapon, hovering above it hesitantly. Finally he wrapped his fingers around the grip. "It's heavy." Nora warned him as he lifted it from her hands. Sure enough, as soon as he held most of the weight, he nearly dropped it into the snow.

"I can barely lift it." Shaun groaned. "Can't we get a smaller gun?" His arms were awkwardly raised close to his chest, and the barrel slouched downward, almost pointed at the ground.

"This is the gun we have, so it's the gun we use." Nora told him. Admittedly the Colt 6520 was a massive handgun even by the standards of an adult, but he needed to be able to use it. To not be afraid or defenseless. She grabbed his elbows and straightened out his arms. "Keep it held up." She went behind him and looked over his shoulder. "Now raise the barrel and line up the sights."

He squinted and scowled at the pistol like it was some blinding light, his arms straight as a rod and holding it as far away as possible. "For how long?" He asked.

"Just relax." Nora said. "Don't lock your elbows." She recited to Shaun what Nate had taught her that summer - focus on the front sight, squeeze the trigger, remember to breathe, and keep both eyes open. After every pointer came the _click_ of an empty chamber as Shaun squeezed the trigger. Even if the gun were loaded, there was only trees around them. No danger of anything being broken or damaged. "Now… why aren't we using bullets?" She quizzed him.

"Because it's dangerous." Shaun answered.

"And why is it dangerous?"

"Because… I might shoot someone by accident?"

Nora snorted. "Well, that too I guess. But why else?"

Shaun frowned. "Because someone might hear us. And come to kill us."

Nora put a hand on his shoulder. "It's not like that. Not everyone is out to get us. We just don't know who exactly is out there." Shaun continued frowning, and stared at the snow. Nora knelt down beside him. "Listen. You know we'll never let anyone hurt you."

"I'm just worried about Dad." Shaun said quietly.

"He's gonna be fine. Your father's been through a lot of dangerous things, and he's always come back." Nora told him. _He always comes back._

"But it's been more than a week."

It occurred to Nora that she had nothing to offer him but platitudes. She couldn't tell Shaun everything would be alright, because she herself didn't know what would happen. She was just as helpless and afraid as Shaun… and she hated being helpless. "And it might be another week before he comes back. We're all hoping it happens soon. But you can't spend all your time worrying about something you can't change. We have to stay in the moment."

Shaun nodded slowly. "Stay in the moment. Okay." He raised the pistol toward the trees again. "Where were we, then?"

Over the course of the next hour, she taught him a few more things about handling pistols. She showed him the safety and how it worked, she showed him how to reload, as well as how to load bullets into the magazine. And finally, she gave him a quick rundown on trigger discipline. Nora decided to save teaching him how to disassemble and reassemble the weapon for the next day. _After brushing up on how to do it myself in my room tonight…_

By the end of the lessons, Shaun's confidence seemed to be soaring. "Once I get really good with guns, I can protect everyone in the camp!" He announced as they walked back home. "Anyone who tries to shoot us, I'll shoot them first!" He pointed his fingers around at the trees, shooting imaginary targets with imaginary bullets.

Nora smiled sadly at him. His renewed enthusiasm was reassuring, but his fixation on being attacked worried her. Cindy and Nate being shot had affected him more than she had realized. To him, the concept was some vague nightmare, an ever present danger that could strike at any moment. He didn't fully understand the reality behind it. _Neither do I, if I'm being honest._ But she knew, thinking logically, that another attack was extremely unlikely. "You know that's a job for your father and I, right?" She asked him.

"No! You don't have to worry about me. I'll protect you." Shaun told her, brandishing a toothy grin.

Nora couldn't help but laugh. _He's certainly his father's son._ "You're a ways away from having a gun of your own." She said. "Until then… you don't have to worry about anyone getting attacked. We'll make sure that doesn't happen."

They had crossed the river to the southeast, into the forest to practice with the pistol. Now they were following the riverbank back to the bridge. Shaun was making a little game of hopping along the smooth, slick stones by the water. Nora kept her eyes on the woods, which stood as desolate as ever. A thin layer of frost had crept over the stony trunks, something that was noticeably not there in the summer. She wondered how much colder things would get before winter ended.

Eventually they ascended a ridge that would take them back to the road. After some additional hiking, Nora noticed something situated beyond a thicket of trees to the north. It looked industrial, metal with grey and yellow paint. No more than four feet tall. "Hold on." She said to Shaun, and ventured out to investigate. She heard him stomping through the snow behind her, following her anyway. As they approached the machine, they both let out a gasp. A dessicated corpse sat slumped over against the grey cylinder. Eyes rotted away, jaw hanging open. Clad in the ruined remains of business attire. Shaun whimpered and turned away, and went to hide behind Nora. She pressed him against her leg. "It's alright." She said. "You don't have to look, but just know that this… is the way the world is. A lot of people died a long time ago." She didn't want to shelter him from the idea of death.

After keeping his face buried in her pant leg for a while, Shaun peered back out. "Okay…" He murmured. He glared at the corpse, as if he thought it was likely to get up and jump on him.

"I can see it has some things on it. You can stay here, but I'm gonna go look." Even at close range, Nora couldn't tell what the machine was. A large grey cylinder with a yellow box next to it. The grey cylinder had a bullet hole in it, she noticed, to match the hole in the back of the corpse's head. The faint remains of dried blood could still be seen on the icy metal. _He must have killed himself… pretty shortly after the bombs. But where's his gun?_ Nora hummed and reached into the snow where the corpse's hand was buried. She dug around until she felt cold steel, stinging her skin even through her gloves. As she tried to pull the gun out, the corpse's arm came up with it, its bony fingers frozen stuck to the grip. With a yank she snapped the fingers off the hand, and the corpse slumped over into the snow. "Ugh… God." Nora groaned. One by one, she had to pry the fingers off of the grip, cracking away the ice around them. _Disgusting._

The gun was a snub-nosed revolver. She opened the cylinder. Five .38 rounds and one spent shell. _I think we can use the casing._ She made sure the hammer wasn't cocked back and stuck the revolver into her waistband. "You got anything else for us?" She whispered to the corpse. _Come on, there has to be some food._ In its pockets she found nothing but an old photo. A family. _In the end, thinking about the lost._ Nora put the photo back and dug around in the snow some more. She pulled out a little wooden box with a Rad-X pill bottle and two bags of RadAway inside. "Huh." She muttered.

"Is that… RadAway?" Shaun said behind her. She turned to see him looking over at her unsuredly.

Nora stood up. "Yeah. A few bags."

"...Why didn't he use it?" Shaun looked up at her, confused.

She wasn't sure how to answer that. She supposed it would best to tell him as much of the truth as he needed to hear. "Well…" Nora shuffled. "The same reason he… shot himself. He didn't want to live."

"Why not?"

"He… I think he lost his family."

His expression fell. "Oh…"

Shaun was quiet for the rest of the walk back. Nora kept glancing at him as they went, staring sullenly at the ground. _Damn it. I might have given him too much too fast._ She put her hand on his shoulder. "Try not to dwell on it, honey." She said softly.

Shaun didn't look up. They continued to walk in silence. "What would you do if I died?" He suddenly asked. Nora stopped. Shaun walked ahead a few steps further, then turned around. "Mom?" He asked.

"Shaun… don't say things like that." Nora said quietly.

"Why not?"

"Because. You're my entire world. Me and your father. Our whole… purpose, is to keep you safe." Nora sighed sadly. "What would I do if you died? _I_ would die. That's why we teach you to protect yourself. Why we go out and risk our lives to find supplies. For you. It's all for you."

Shaun didn't speak for a moment. "I just can't stop thinking about stuff like that." He finally whispered.

"Just try to remember what I said." She told him. "Stay in the moment. And… just remember that we'll always protect you."

"Okay." Shaun shuffled his feet. "I'm sorry." He said. "I didn't want to… make you sad."

Nora sniffled and took his hand. "Don't be sorry." They continued walking back to Sanctuary. _It's good to be reminded of why you're fighting._

* * *

 **NOVEMBER 20, 2087. 1:25 P.M. VAULT SURVIVORS: 72** They were both exhausted by the time they crested over the Old North Bridge. The cold weather took their breath away. It was going to get more and more difficult to go on trips until winter passed.

Codsworth awaited them at the edge of the bridge. "Welcome back, both of you!" He chirped as they approached him. "I trust everything went smoothly?"

"Yeah! I did really good!" Shaun declared. "Right, Mom?"

"You did." Nora said. "We'll start using bullets… eventually." _When it's safe._

Shaun began excitedly recounting his lessons to Codsworth as they walked. Nora's mind began to wander. All around Sanctuary, people still stayed in their houses. The camp was starting to resemble a ghost town. The Anders' garden had completely frozen over and died a few days ago, causing a panic. People began dividing themselves by the houses or tents they lived in, hoarding food for themselves. Morale was on the verge of collapse. If the scavenger groups didn't come back soon, violence was going to break out over the last remaining food supplies. _Damn it. How did it come to this?_ Everyone had assumed they had enough food to last at least six months. By the time it ran out, their crops were supposed to be enough to sustain them. Their calculations must have been all wrong. And it didn't help that no one from the Vault except David really knew anything about farming.

Nora's stomach rumbled. "Shaun, why don't you head back home without me? You can tell the Ables all about it."

"Okay. Where are you going?" Shaun asked.

"I've got to talk to someone." She watched Shaun and Codsworth as they went back to their house. Shaun still chattering away. _At least he's still okay._

She found Don in his tent, huddled by an electric heater. He squinted at her as she entered. "Nora. What brings you to my fine establishment?"

"Well, I was out in the woods today, and I found an old corpse sitting in the snow. Pre-War. Had some supplies on him."

"Food?" Don asked.

"No, sorry. Just some Rad-Away, and a revolver. Five .38s." Nora pulled the revolver out of her waistband.

"Damn, you got my hopes up." Don was in charge of keeping inventory of the weapons in camp. He took the revolver. "Well, couple months from now, someone will probably be prying it off of _our_ frozen corpses, the way things are going. And we can't eat RadAway." He said.

"You don't have to tell me." Nora replied.

Don shrugged. "Still, it's not over yet. Me, I'm just waiting for Nate to come back and save the day with his groceries."

Nora chuckled. "Yeah, you and me both." She said.

"So…" Don became more serious. "How are you and Shaun doing?" He asked.

"Ah," Nora sighed. "I'm holding up. I'm kind of used to Nate being gone for long periods of time… he was in the army." She explained. "But I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried about him. Who knows what's out there, you know?"

Don nodded, and looked down pensively. "And Shaun?"

"Shaun… I don't even know. He seems so energetic, but at the same time - it's like he's traumatized. Always asking about people dying and getting hurt. I'm not sure what to think."

"He's gonna be okay." Don reassured her. "Kids… they're stronger than you think. They adapt quicker than we do."

"Yeah. I guess they do." Nora said quietly.

"Hey." Don said. She looked at him. "You're gonna be okay too."

Nora laughed. "Thanks."

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go put this revolver in our super secret gun stash which no one knows the location of." He joked.

"Alright. Until next time." Nora said, waving goodbye.

Nora stepped through the door back home to see her housemates gathered in the living room. Arthur, Connie, Diane, Zeke, Cindy and Codsworth, all watching Shaun regale them talking about how brave he had been that afternoon. Nora smiled at that. Things may have been bad, but she was glad he was happy. _I'm starting to understand. Everything he says, it's not out of fear. He's not traumatized. He just wants to help._ In his own sort of way, he was dealing with what had happened better than she was.

She joined the rest of them in the living room. Cindy greeted her as she sat on the couch. "Nora. You're back."

"Hey, Cindy." Nora said.

"So, what do you think of the show? He's like our own little TV." Cindy chuckled. "When he got home, he ran right up to me and said he was gonna 'keep me safe'. What's gotten into him?"

Nora smiled. "I guess… he finally knows what he wants to do." _He wants to be like his parents._


End file.
